Types of Claims
Protecting freedom of speech is a higher moral imperative than regulating misinformation to ensure public safety.
What is a Claim of Value?
This is an attack on the character of a person rather than his or her opinions or arguments.
What is an Ad Hominem?
[Name the fallacy at play in this example:]
"We can't possibly trust your proposal; you declared bankruptcy ten years ago, so clearly you know nothing about managing large finances."
What is Ad Hominem?
Since scientists haven't definitively proven that life doesn't exist on other planets in our galaxy, it is logical to conclude that intelligent alien life does exist out there.
What is a fallacy?
This is Appeal to Ignorance: Claiming that a proposition is true simply because it hasn't been proven false, or conversely, that it is false because it hasn't been proven true. Lack of evidence against a claim is treated as evidence for the claim.
This involves diverting the discussion away from the central, difficult argument by introducing an emotionally charged, unrelated side issue.
What is a Red Herring?
Every residential neighborhood ought to have a legally mandated maximum speed limit of 20 mph, regardless of current road design.
What is a Claim of Policy?
The error of drawing a broad conclusion from too small a sample size, a biased selection of facts, or stereotypes.
What is a Hasty Generalization?
[Name the fallacy at play in this example:]
"You should definitely buy the new 'Z-Brand' motorcycle oil. The company's advertisements feature an Olympic gold medalist swimmer saying it's the best synthetic oil on the market."
What is False Authority?
The destruction of any natural wetland for the purpose of commercial development is an inexcusable environmental crime.
What is a Claim?
This is a Claim of Value.
This is the tactic of attacking a debater's character, motives, or personal history rather than engaging with the merits of their actual proposal.
What is an Ad Hominem?
The average attention span of a typical adult in the US has demonstrably decreased by over two minutes in the last decade.
What is a Claim of Fact?
This asserts a claim must be true, valid, or good simply because many people believe it or are doing it.
What is a Bandwagon or Ad Populum?
[Name the fallacy at play in this example:]
"I've met three employees from the new 'Quick-Start' tech company, and all of them were rude. Therefore, everyone who works at 'Quick-Start' must have terrible customer service skills."
What is Hasty Generalization?
"If we let students use their phones in the classroom to take notes, the next thing you know, they'll be texting during lectures, then playing games, then completely ignoring the teacher, and soon nobody will ever learn anything in school. Therefore, we must ban all phones immediately."
What is a fallacy?
This is a Slippery Slope. The fallacy uses fear or over-exaggeration to persuade. It fails to acknowledge that there are usually many factors, choices, and possible stopping points between the first step (A) and the final consequence (Z). The slope is presented as being so "slippery" that once you take the first step, you cannot stop.
This error attempts to shut down all debate by asserting that the arguer's fundamental belief is beyond questioning or requires no evidence for support.
What is Dogmatism?
The widespread adoption of energy-efficient lighting (LEDs) has led to a noticeable decline in insect populations in suburban areas.
What is a Claim of Cause and Effect?
This asserts that a relatively minor first step will inevitably lead to a chain of related, usually increasingly negative, events that will ultimately result in an extreme or undesirable outcome.
What is a Slippery Slope?
[Name the fallacy at play in this example:]
Opponent's Argument: "I think we should increase funding for school arts programs because studies show it boosts cognitive development."
Fallacy Rebuttal: "My opponent wants to take all the money out of crucial science and math courses and spend it on letting kids play with finger paints all day! That shows a total disregard for preparing students for high-tech jobs."
What is Straw Man?
The act of using deepfake technology to generate a likeness of any living person should be categorized as identity fraud.
What is a Claim?
This is a Claim of Definition.
This is the strategy of claiming that a small, initial action will inevitably trigger a disastrous and exaggerated chain of uncontrolled negative consequences.
What is the Slippery Slope?
Any software that uses proprietary algorithms to determine loan eligibility should be legally defined as a "credit scoring system" and regulated accordingly.
What is a Claim of Definition?
An error in reasoning where the speaker or writer presents their core beliefs or assumptions as being beyond question, effectively closing off the possibility of any meaningful debate or counter-evidence.
What is Dogmatism?
[Name the fallacy at play in this example:]
Original Topic: "We need to discuss why the city budget for public transit was cut by 15% this year."
Fallacy: "Before we talk about the bus budget, let's remember that the previous administration wasted money on an unnecessary fountain downtown. We need to focus on controlling all unnecessary spending."
What is Red Herring?
"Protecting freedom of speech is a higher moral imperative than regulating misinformation to ensure public safety, because any effort to restrict speech, no matter how small, is an unconstitutional government overreach that immediately leads to tyranny and the total destruction of all civil liberties."
What is a Fallacy?
Though it starts as a Claim of Value, it moves to a Slippery Slope Fallacy.
This maneuver involves misrepresenting, exaggerating, or simplifying the opponent's position to create a much weaker, easily defeatable argument.
What is a Straw Man?