Is pointing out logical fallacies not a thing anymore?
Asked by
kevbo (
25672
)
September 2nd, 2015
from iPhone
Remember when Fluther was rife with posses and vanguards who would go around enforcing logic on everyone? Is it me or does nobody here do that anymore? Does it happen much elsewhere or was it kind of a passing phase? Does it only rise up in response to waves of fantastical claims? Just curious.
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16 Answers
It seems to be more common in the world in general for “This is my opinion” to be an acceptable excuse for positing all kinds of crap.
I get picky at times and am probably one of those insufferable people that I so resent. Life plays cruel and ironic tricks on us. But there are times when attention must be paid to form and order. Drifting from standards is only dangerous when the drift is allowed to go unnoticed.
We just don’t have many of those kinds of questions. The folks who are left are, generally, of the same mind set.
Not according to my Ouija board, my magic 8 ball (all signs point to No), and the Donald Trump position papers.
Take away ad populem and ad hominem and there would be no Fluther
I don’t think most people even know what that means.
That’s what curious minds and Google is for, @tinyfaery.
You assume people have curious minds and are reasonable enough to accept truth, not mythology.
No, I assume that most folks on here are curious enough to go look up words they don’t know, like “ad populem” and “ad hominem.”
@tinyfarery you must credit @Dutchess III for her insight. While you are probably correct about “most people”, you would encounter considerable difficulty carrying that observation to “most people here”. And I prefer to believe that the bulk of those few here who did not know, have upon following this discussion, corrected the lapse. As for fluther—- “res Ipso loquitur
Unfortunately I run across way too many people who are willing to fight to the death insisting that some absurdity is TRUE. No matter how much correct information you give them, they just ignore it and continue to fight blindly.
It’s annoying at both ends of this problem. On one end, you have the smug, Dawkins-fellating materialist hat-tippers who run around quacking the words “cognitive bias” and “logical fallacy” at everything, even arguments which do not depend on or attempt to include rationalism. On the other end, you have the Fox-watching Dunning-Kruger ignoramuses who believe just possessing a strong opinion and a runny nose entitles someone to equal natural authority with everyone else regardless of relative expertise.
It isn’t always called for. I smoke 2 packs of cigarettes everyday along with occasional cigars. I also drink plenty of alcohol. On more than one occasion, some were compelled to point out the “logical fallacy” of the fact that I think smoking is harmless for my bloodline because of my genetic history of good health and longevity. Even though, statistically, people who smoke get sick/die young, such a statistic does not apply to my bloodline, so it isn’t illogical for me to keep smoking and drinking when generation after generation continues to experience good health and longevity.
The same holds true for people who are much more emotional. No logic is called for. Might makes right.
@obvinate Ditto the Dutchess. Hers is as worthy a GA answer as can possibly be achieved to your answer.
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