Show Notes Kettle Logic is when multiple arguments are presented at once, often overlapping or contradicting each other, without acknowledging the contradictions. We started out with the Donald tweeting this excuse for committing tax fraud or possibly losing a billion dollars: ...
Show Notes Special Pleading describes a situation where you have a rule that you apply to everyone else, but make up an excuse to explain why the rule doesn’t apply to you. When you are inconsistent in applying the rules in this way without a valid logical reason, you are using fallacious reasoning. We...
Show Notes This fallacy, sometimes called ‘Missing the Point’, is committed when someone provides evidence refuting or proving a point which is irrelevant to the issue at hand. This can often be a quite effective distraction, but as it does not address the real question, it remains fallacious. We started out with...
Show Notes Poisoning the Well is a kind of Ad Hominem fallacy where the attack on the person making a claim happens in advance. By attributing negative traits to someone before they even have the chance to make their argument, the well poisoner primes the listener not to believe what they are...
Show Notes This is a special episode inspired by a Twitter conversation. It's only 20 minutes and has none of the usual sections, so the notes below are simply links to things I talked about in the episode. The twitter conversation that inspire this bonus episode. Trump's tweet about executing babies: Senate Democrats just...
Show Notes Cherry Picking is a logical fallacy in which the arguer ignores a large amount of evidence which casts doubt on their claim, carefully selecting only the parts which make their claim sound plausible. Where there is controversy on an issue, data to support both sides, or ambiguous reports which...
Show Notes Ad Hominem is Latin for 'to the man' and describes an argument where the focus of the attack is not on the views a person holds but on the person themselves. It is an attempt to distract from the matter at hand by introducing irrelevant details aimed at discrediting...
Show Notes When someone supports their argument by making a statement that is significantly more emphatic than can possibly be supported by evidence, they may be committing the Hyperbolic Fallacy. As a rule a hyperbole is not meant to be taken literally. When someone says they had the worst morning ever, you know they...
Show Notes Lying with Statistics can involve using highly specific numbers to make it seem like you know what you're talking about, using a true statistic out of context to bolster a particular point of view, or simply using made up statistics and hoping your opponent doesn't check them. We started out...
Show Notes The Association Fallacy occurs when a person or information source is dismissed because of their connection to, or their similarity to another person or source which is already viewed negatively for some established reason. The examples used in this episode will be coming soon. Here are the links to the stories...