solo1's Top Ten Message Board Debating Errors1. Non Sequitur: A statement that does not follow logically from what has just been said; a conclusion that does not follow. 2. (Hasty) generalisations: A statment based on unreliable, too little, or biased evidence; extrapolating a general event from an individual event. 3. Ad hominem: Attacking a person who presents an argument rather than dealing with the argument logically. 4. Bandwagon: Arguing that if everyone is doing something, it must be OK. 5. Circular reasoning ("begging the question"): An assertion that re-states the point just made, or is included as part of its own proof. 6. Red Herring: Dodging the real issue by drawing attention to something irrelevant. 7. Post Hoc, Ergo Procter Hoc: "After this, so because of this", assuming that sequence implies causality. 8. Either ... or: Stating that only two choices exist when there are more. 9. False analogy: Assuming that because two things are alike in some ways, they must be alike in other, unconnected, ways. 10. Equivocation: A statement that relies on the mis-reading of a particular sense of a word. And just bubbling under - Straw Man: Effectively demolishing an argument other than the one in question.
|