List of logical fallacies

Don't use 'em!

Hello True Believers!

It would seem that since the beginning of time, ATS is chock full of people giving textbook examples of logical fallacies.

What is a logical fallacy you say?

Let's find out.

fallacies
plural of fal·la·cy (Noun)
Noun:
1. A mistaken belief, esp. one based on unsound argument.
2. A failure in reasoning that renders an argument invalid.

What does that mean to you?

Let me give you an example. One of my favorites. It's called argumentum ad ignorantiam, or an appeal from ignorance.



Have you ever been shoved into a conversational corner by someone claiming that unicorns are real because you can't prove that they aren't? We all have. That's it!

I won't list an example for each one because there are dozens.

Big Ol' List

OK. Just one more of my favorites.



No True Scotsman!

You: No Scotsman eats sugar on his porridge.
Me: I'm Scottish and I eat sugar on my porridge.
You: Well, no true Scotsman eats sugar on his porridge.

And if you'd like a poster to print out and put right above your monitor that you use during posts, follow this link.

yourlogicalfallacyis.com...

Thanks!

You'll find logic and the facts are useless here.

People will believe only what they want to believe, logic be damned.

If you don't like it you should go to a forum that values logic.

This one is always fun:

Mind projection Fallacy

Mind projection fallacy, as coined by physicist and bayesian philosopher E.T. Jaynes, occurs when one takes for sure that the way he sees the world reflects the way the world really is, going as far as assuming the real existence of imagined objects. Another form of the fallacy is when one assumes his own lack of knowledge about how the things really are as meaning that things are indeterminate.

It's amazing how guilty we all are of this one.

Originally posted by EvilSadamClone
You'll find logic and the facts are useless here.

People will believe only what they want to believe, logic be damned.

If you don't like it you should go to a forum that values logic.

I value logic, when it is thorough and consistent.

An interesting point to make is that it isn't ATS per se, but instead it is the whole of humanity. Anywhere you go, you are going to find flaws in the people and their ideas.

Like I have said many times, I try to avoid 'believing' in anything since belief is based entirely on faith. Faith happens when there is a lack of pertinent data to know the facts for sure.

I really enjoy speculating but that is all it is, my speculative capacity. I don't know for sure either way, but I do enjoy considering the alternative possibilities.

I do understand your cynicism however, as that is quite a rampant feeling these days.

But let's look at how intellectually savvy the people were 50 years ago, or 100 years ago. I mean the average population and what types of wacky things they believed in. You will find that the average intelligence these days is slightly better than that of yesteryears. Slowly but surely we are improving, the information age is acting as a catalyst and is speeding up our development.

Point is that even though things are bad, they aren't that bad when viewed from a historical perspective.
100 years ago the literacy rate was dismal compared to the near 100% we have today in the USA.

Just looking at literacy rates should be enough to comfort you in these trying times of absurd beliefs.

reply to post by muzzleflash


Thanks for the excellent post!

It's funny though that you say that fallacies in general may be diminishing due to the information age. I think that may be true, especially with the recent increase in skepticism.

However, I think that if you study history, you'll find that generations of people have always had some revelation on some subjects, while inventing their own mythology on others.

We've branched off now, but thank you again for your post.

Hey, great list.

Jusr found this site that has a quick blurb on each fallacy when you roll over the icons.

Found this today and my first thought was "I should share this with ATS". Thought this might make a good addition to the thread.