A fallacy is an argument which provides poor reasoning in support of its conclusion. Here are some examples:
Begging the Question: The argument's conclusion is used as one of its premises. Basically the proof is assumed.
A: He's mad right now.
B: How do you know?
A: Because he's really angry.
Of course smoking causes cancer. The smoke from cigarettes is a carcinogen!
Prosecutor to defendant: So how did you feel when you killed your wife?
Ad hominem (or Against the Person): When someone tries to win an argument by denigrating its presenter (favorite fallacy used by politicians and the media to put down an enemy)
"You claim that this man is innocent, but you cannot be trusted since you are a criminal as well."
"Hey, Professor Moore, we shouldn't have to read this book by Freud. Everyone knows he used cocaine."
Argumentum ad Populum (Literally "Argument to the People"): Using an appeal to popular assent, often by arousing the feelings and enthusiasm of the multitude rather than building an argument.
Ex: "The Bold and
the Listless must be a great book. It’s been on the best
seller list for 8 weeks."
Appeal to ignorance (ad ignorantiam): It has two forms: The fallacy occurs when you argue that your conclusion must be true,
because there is no evidence against it. Ad ignorantiam wrongly shifts the
burden of proof away from the one making the claim.
"She hasn't said she doesn't like you, right? So she's probably interested. Call her up."
"Nobody has conclusively proven that the Yeti doesn't exist, therefore it must exist."
"I thought I had every reason to think I was doing fine leading the group; no one complained."
Hasty Generalization: You are guilty of hasty generalization when jumping into conclusion about all things of a certain type based on evidence that concerns only a few things of that type (favorite argument used by politicians and ideologues).
"The department of law enforcement in Miami is corrupt. Five police officers in three different departments were involved in drug dealing in 2017" (right answer: Miami has 4,780 police employees, i.e., 5 corrupt officers are 0.16% of the force).
"Men are toxic! It's crystal clear: They perpetrate over 76% of the violent crime in the US." (right answer: violent men committing violent crimes constitute 6% of the population of males in the US).
Appeal to Authority: A claim is accepted because not because of its merit, but because of the authority (power, fame, etc) of the person saying it.
"Pacifism is a good idea because the brilliant scientist Einstein advocated it."
"If the Pope says it, it must be true."
"Nobody is a better judge than public opinion."
Red Herring: This fallacy consists in diverting attention from the real issue by focusing instead on an issue having only a surface relevance to the first.
Daughter: "I'm so hurt that Todd broke up with me, Mom."
Mother: "Just think of all the starving children in Africa, honey. Your problems will seem pretty insignificant then."
Appeal to Fear: To use threat or harm to advance an argument. Ex: "If we don’t stop petroleum consumption, global warming will increase. Therefore, we need to stop petroleum consumption immediately."
False Dilemma: It presumes that there are only two alternatives to a given problem, when in fact there are more than two.
"Either science can explain how she was cured or else, it's a miracle."
"Since there is nothing good on TV tonight, I will just have to get drunk."
"If you are don't accept our climate catastrophe, then you're a denier!"
False Cause: Supposing that two events are connected when in fact they are not.
"They had a very successful business. Then they decided to adopt a child, and the business went immediately into the red."
Inconsistency: A person commits the fallacy of inconsistency when he or she makes contradictory claims.
"I'm a strong believer in freedom of speech. However, when a person like John Dean can influence our youth , you have to draw a line and say no more."
"This is the truth: truth is subjective."
Etimological fallacy: Believing that the present day meaning of a word of concept should necessarily be similar to its historical meaning.
"So-and-so" (a phrase used in the 19th Century) should not be used anymore. It's very offensive!
