I can think of many cases where "the other side" refused to compromise, creating a negative-sum game. But let me cite an example where "my side" was in the wrong.

I'm a liberal-ish person, and I think most states could use more tax revenue. I'm also concerned about climate change. This is a pretty mainstream set of positions.

In 2016 there was a ballot initiative proposed in Washington state that would levy a tax on carbon emissions, and offset it with cuts to other taxes. The result would be revenue-neutral (or slightly revenue-negative). It was opposed by the usual suspects (energy companies), but also some environmental groups and the state Democratic party.

Part of the liberal argument was that the initiative wasn't perfect. Given a new source of revenue, liberals saw many needs that could be met, instead of tax cuts. But that wasn't the deal on the table. The initiative failed, and we got the "dead baby" of no carbon reductions, no spending on other needs, and a less efficient tax system.

Details here: https://ballotpedia.org/Washington_Carbon_Emission_Tax_and_S...

Not to get too 2016 about it but a lot of Republicans would've told you in 2015 that their top 3 beliefs were family values, cutting gov't spending and free trade.

How about the US government in the 1960's conceding to civil rights demands in order to avoid a violent revolution?

Are you saying that the people who were fighting for civil rights actually deserved to lose because they were willing to... fight to get them?

No.

That doesn't make any sense as a comparison that I'm trying to find between real life politics and the the above commenter's analogy about sacrificing a baby just to "win".

Two words: Donald Trump

We have a couple recent examples. If you think that the freedom of speech on the internet is important and foundational, then FOSTA appears to be us trading a deeper issue for a shallower one. Leaving aside the fact that it's not even likely to fix the problem it's trying to solve.

A similar example: the recent court cases by state AGs to ban certain types of CAD files from being published.