My Fallacies

WHAT ARE FALLACIES?
They are errors

or mistakes in
reasoning.
Fallacies
Committed in a
Debate
Argumentum ad Hominem
Attacking a persons character
instead of the content of that
persons argument.
Examples:
Don't believe anything John

says; he's a nerd.
"The members of the opposition
are a couple of anarchists!
One of the scientists has been

treated for emotional problems,
so his pessimism about nuclear
waste merits no attention.
Argumentum ad Ignorantiam
Concluding that
something is true
since you cant
prove its false.
Examples:
God does not exist, since no one
can demonstrate that He does
exist.
There is no proof that

witches do exist;
therefore, they do not.
Nobody has ever shown me it is

false that psychic surgery cures
cancer, so I believe Clara when
she says psychic surgery cured
her cancer.
Argumentum ad Misericordiam
Appealing to a persons
unfortunate circumstance
as a way of getting
someone to accept a
conclusion. He may even
admit the contention of his
opponent , and appeals to
pity and commiseration.
Examples:
"Your honor, how can the prosecution

dare try to send this poor, defenseless
child to jail for the murder of his father
and mother. Have a heart; the boy is
now an orphan."
Please dont arrest me, I have wife

and kids to support.
Argumentum ad Populum
This fallacy is committed
when the disputant
evades the real issue and
appeals to the passion or
prejudices of his hearers.
Example:
All of my friends have brand
new cellphones. I must

have one as well.
Everyone jaywalks here, and as

long as I look carefully, nothing will
happen.
In a court of law, the jury

vote by majority; therefore
they will always make the
correct decision.
Argumentum ad Verecundiam
This fallacy is
committed when the
debater contends that
what he alleges is valid
because a person who
commands respect and
reverence supports it.
Examples:
Bruce Willis supports Save the

Whales International, so it must
be a good cause.
You can believe the

moon is covered with
dust because the
president of the
Philippines said so and
he should know.
Argumentum ad Baculum
This fallacy is committed when the
debater ignores the real issue and
appeals to force rather than
reason.
Examples:
"Pay back the loan and the 10 % daily
interest by Thursday, or be sure that
you have your hospital insurance paid
up."
Those who will support this man

will be charged of their life!
You better agree that the new

company policy is the best bet
if you expect to keep your job.
Argumentum ad logicam
This is arguing that because an
argument has been shown to be
fallacious, the conclusion reached
must be false. Fallacious
arguments can arrive at true
conclusions, they just don't prove
the conclusions reached.
Example:
"Take the fraction 16/64. Now,
canceling a six on top and a six on the
bottom, we get that 16/64 = 1/4."
"Wait a second! You can't just cancel
the six!"
"Oh, so you're telling us 16/64 is not
equal to 1/4, are you?"
Example:
"This new test seemed so promising,
but the 3 studies that supported
its validity turned out to have
critical methodological flaws, so the
test is probably not valid."
Black & White Fallacy
Arguing with the use of sharp

distinctions despite any
factual or theoretical
support for them.
Example:
"He is either a pro GMA or a
pro Estrada.
Love football or you are not a
man.
Are we going to vote for a tuition

fee increase or are we going to
allow our school to deteriorate
into a substandard custodial
institution?
Genetic Fallacy
This fallacy is committed by
paying too much attention to the
genesis or origin rather then the
reasons offered for it.
Example:
He came from the province. He does
not know Metro Manila.
"Sure, the media claims that the
AFP is corrupt. But we all know
about the media's credibility, don't
we."
Hasty Generalization
This fallacy is committed if there is
no enough instances to support
the conclusion.
Example:
Smith, who is from England, decides to
attend graduate school at Ohio State
University. He has never been to the US
before. The day after he arrives, he is
walking back from an orientation
session and sees two white (albino)
squirrels chasing each other around a
tree. In his next letter home, he tells his
family that American squirrels are white.
Example:
Sam is riding her bike in her home town
in Maine, minding her own business.
A station wagon comes up behind her
and the driver starts beeping his horn
and then tries to force her off the
road. As he goes by, the driver yells
"get on the sidewalk where you
belong!" Sam sees that the car has
Ohio plates and concludes that all
Ohio drivers are jerks.
Hey, this car is cheap, the

paint job is good, and it is
affordable. I should buy it.
False Analogy
It refers to faulty comparison of

premises on a given argument.
Example:
The universe is like an intricate
watch.
Therefore, the universe must have
been designed by some kind of
creator.
False Dilemma
An argument that suggest only two
possible alternatives, neither of
which are typically very appealing.
In fact, many other alternatives may
exist.
Example:
"Look, you are going to have to make
up your mind. Either you decide
that you can afford this stereo, or
you decide you are going to do
without music for a while."
Example:
Senator Jill: "We'll have to cut education
funding this year."
Senator Bill: "Why?"
Senator Jill: "Well, either we cut the
social programs or we live with a huge
deficit and we can't live with the deficit."
Dicto Simpliciter (Unqualified

Generalization)
This is the fallacy of making a
sweeping statement and
expecting it to be true on every
specific case - in other words,
stereotyping.
Example:
"Several psychics have been found to be
playing tricks. Ergo all
psychics are
tricksters."
It is a general truth that no one should lie.
Therefore, no one should lie if
a
murderer at the point of a knife
asks
you for information you know would lead
to a further murder.
Non - Sequitor
Drawing a conclusion which does not
follow the evidence.
Example:
My shoe lace broke; I guess its time
for me to buy a new car.
I lost my job last week, so Bush must
be a really poor president.
Post Hoc
This fallacy is committed when it is
concluded that one event
causes another simply because the
proposed cause occurred before
the proposed effect.
Example:
I had been doing pretty poorly this
season. Then my girlfriend gave
me this neon laces for my spikes
and I won my next three
races.
Those laces must be
good luck...if
I keep on wearing them I can't help
but win!
Example:
Joan is scratched by a cat while
visiting her friend. Two days
later she comes down with a
fever. Joan concludes that the
cat's scratch must be the cause of
her illness.
Argumentum ad Judicium
The debater ignores the real
question and maintains that his
contention is valid because
people in general believe it to be
so: A general belief cannot be
wrong.
Example:
A certain University with

seven thousand students
used to advertise in this way:
Seven thousand students
cannot be wrong.
Argumentum ad Envidiam
The debater ignores the real
question and inflames his
audience with hatred and
rancor.
Example:
On the proposition:
Resolved, That FilipinoJapanese trade relations
be immediately resumed.
A negative speaker argued that

the Filipino people should not
establish any relation whatever,
social, economic, or political, with
a race that is cruel and sadistic
a race whose blood-thirsty people
and army tortured and massacred
innocent civilians.

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My Fallacies

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WHAT ARE FALLACIES?

They are errors

Don't believe anything John

One of the scientists has been

There is no proof that

Nobody has ever shown me it is

"Your honor, how can the prosecution

Please dont arrest me, I have wife

new cellphones. I must

Everyone jaywalks here, and as

In a court of law, the jury

Bruce Willis supports Save the

You can believe the

Those who will support this man

You better agree that the new

Black & White Fallacy

Arguing with the use of sharp

Are we going to vote for a tuition

Hey, this car is cheap, the

It refers to faulty comparison of

Dicto Simpliciter (Unqualified

A certain University with

A negative speaker argued that

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