The (Endless) Appeal To Research Fallacy
I don't know if this fallacy has been named - let me know if it has.It's the one when someone claims that your belief has little weight because you haven't researched the issue as much as they have.For...
View ArticleTruth is Not Relative
I was recently arguing with a good friend of mine, who happens to believe in alien encounters, psychic powers, reincarnation etc. The argument made a cold sharp transition from a healthy discussion...
View ArticleConsensus Counts
In the case a hypothesis is supported by clear-cut tests, there is no need for consensus. Consensus is however useful when a plethora of tests are required to test the hypothesis, and domain expertise...
View ArticleGlobal Warming
Ask most climatologists, and they will tell you Global Warming is real and caused by humans. In other words, the consensus of climatologists is clear. Now, while one can somewhat glibly declare that...
View ArticleProperties of Beliefs
Confidence, entanglement, objectivity, social signaling, personal impact, and altruistic impact. Those are six properties of a belief where deep points of disagreement lie which can easily cause a...
View ArticleIntuitions
In an argument, some people will appeal to their own intuition as evidence that they're right and you're wrong. Unscientific? Yes. Patronizing? Yes. Always wrong? No. Sometimes intuition beats...
View ArticleDodging the Dilemma
There's lots of ways to reverse arguments. You can often reverse argument fallacies too. I'm just going to pick one example: The False Dilemma. It's opposite? Dodging the Dilemma.To recap The False...
View ArticleThe Real Factor Pitch
Yesterday someone told me, in his emphatic half-duplex communication style whereby he’s so focused on espousing his wisdom to you that he has no brain left over to detect his listener’s rolling eyes:...
View ArticleKilling for a Debate
What are we achieving by pointing the finger at a mass murderer?A 5 year old knocks over a vase and it shatters all over the floor. Do you point your finger at the kid and shout "Look, it's the dumbest...
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