Author Topic: Logical Fallacies v. Politics  (Read 4379 times)

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Offline snapple

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Logical Fallacies v. Politics
« on: July 05, 2012, 05:20:28 PM »
Ground rules:

1.) Keep it nice so we can have a nice place to play.
2.) Try to keep it issue related.
3.) Be nice.


Alright, I'll give an example of a logical fallacy that bugs the crap out of me. One that I tend to hear (albeit from some of my friends) is one reason why the US should have healthcare provided by the government is because we're the only first world country that doesn't have it. Like, I get the point they're making, but they're not really thinking it through. Are we not taught to have a mind of our own?

Offline TL

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Re: Logical Fallacies v. Politics
« Reply #1 on: July 05, 2012, 05:31:02 PM »
Part of that argument is generally that there's a reason every other developed country has some sort of universal health care. It's not just 'well, other people have it, so what they hey'.
Like, it's not 'the US should have it because everyone else does'. It's 'everyone else has it because it's a really good idea'.

Offline theseoafs

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Re: Logical Fallacies v. Politics
« Reply #2 on: July 05, 2012, 06:09:35 PM »
"Every other developed country has some kind of universal health care, so we should probably have it too" is one of the arguments for universal healthcare, but it's not the only reason, because it's certainly not true that we should do things simply because other countries are doing them.

It's the same kind of reasoning as "all of my friends that are really well-off are investing, so it would probably be a good idea if I did too". There are arguments for investing besides the fact that all your well-off friends are doing it, and investing's worth isn't derived from the fact that your friends are doing it; however, the fact that all your well-off friends are doing it provides support that it's a good idea.

Offline Super Dude

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Re: Logical Fallacies v. Politics
« Reply #3 on: July 05, 2012, 06:13:38 PM »
Did this really need its own thread?
Quote from: bosk1
As frequently happens, Super Dude nailed it.
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Offline jsem

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Re: Logical Fallacies v. Politics
« Reply #4 on: July 05, 2012, 06:18:53 PM »
Did this really need its own thread?
No.

Offline snapple

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Re: Logical Fallacies v. Politics
« Reply #5 on: July 05, 2012, 06:21:09 PM »
Did this really need its own thread?

I said I'll start. jeez. It's where people can say any of their pet peeves or whatever.

Offline theseoafs

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Re: Logical Fallacies v. Politics
« Reply #6 on: July 05, 2012, 06:22:26 PM »
I said I'll start

Actually, you didn't.

Offline snapple

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Re: Logical Fallacies v. Politics
« Reply #7 on: July 05, 2012, 06:23:41 PM »
I said I'll start

Actually, you didn't.

Quote from: me
I'll give an example....

It's not "I'll start" but it is pretty damn close. Slap on a pair of spectacles and you could have read it, too!  :coolio

Offline theseoafs

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Re: Logical Fallacies v. Politics
« Reply #8 on: July 05, 2012, 06:28:09 PM »
I said I'll start

Actually, you didn't.

Quote from: me
I'll give an example....

It's not "I'll start" but it is pretty damn close. Slap on a pair of spectacles and you could have read it, too!  :coolio

:coolio Oh, I see it now!

Offline snapple

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Re: Logical Fallacies v. Politics
« Reply #9 on: July 05, 2012, 06:30:13 PM »
"Every other developed country has some kind of universal health care, so we should probably have it too" is one of the arguments for universal healthcare, but it's not the only reason, because it's certainly not true that we should do things simply because other countries are doing them.

It's the same kind of reasoning as "all of my friends that are really well-off are investing, so it would probably be a good idea if I did too". There are arguments for investing besides the fact that all your well-off friends are doing it, and investing's worth isn't derived from the fact that your friends are doing it; however, the fact that all your well-off friends are doing it provides support that it's a good idea.

Like I said, I totally get that. But people use it like a crutch. "DUDE! Fucking Cuba has it. Why don't we?" I don't have that answer and I don't give a shit if Cuba does. You know what I mean?

Offline GuineaPig

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Re: Logical Fallacies v. Politics
« Reply #10 on: July 05, 2012, 06:33:26 PM »
Justifying spending on infrastructure/funding/etc. on competitive grounds is silly as well.  It doesn't matter that China is doing x or Germany is doing y, what matters is what makes sense in the specific regional context.
"In the beginning, the universe was created. This made a lot of people very angry, and has been widely regarded as a bad idea."

Offline theseoafs

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Re: Logical Fallacies v. Politics
« Reply #11 on: July 05, 2012, 06:34:35 PM »
Like I said, I totally get that. But people use it like a crutch. "DUDE! Fucking Cuba has it. Why don't we?" I don't have that answer and I don't give a shit if Cuba does. You know what I mean?

Well, what can I say? There are a lot of people who are just bad at arguing. :lol

As far as other logical fallacies... I don't know, I can't really think of any. I'm lucky to have surrounded myself with people who know what they're talking about. I'll report back if anything comes to mind.

Offline snapple

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Re: Logical Fallacies v. Politics
« Reply #12 on: July 05, 2012, 06:36:20 PM »
Like I said, I totally get that. But people use it like a crutch. "DUDE! Fucking Cuba has it. Why don't we?" I don't have that answer and I don't give a shit if Cuba does. You know what I mean?

Well, what can I say? There are a lot of people who are just bad at arguing. :lol

As far as other logical fallacies... I don't know, I can't really think of any. I'm lucky to have surrounded myself with people who know what they're talking about. I'll report back if anything comes to mind.


Yeah. I don't necessarily mean that the people who are actually educated about the pros/cons of something like reforming the health care system are making these fallacies. I mean the folks who think they can sum up an entire issue in a 1024x760 (or w/e the dimension is) jpeg.