Thinking Clearly — Recognizing Logical Fallacies 

 

Over the years in the ANTM, people invariably have moments when their mind challenges a statement of the pastor, a policy of the school or even a conclusion that their belief forces them to draw. They say to themselves, "that can't be right", but then are unable to break out of the 'logic' of the arguments presented by leadership. They consider why they shun, but leadership hits them with a seemingly ironclad verse on the matter. Often these situations are bolstered by using logical fallacies that make you feel like "I guess the pastor is right", even though the conclusion you draw feels wrong.

​

Instinctively we've always known there was something wrong with certain kinds of arguments—even going back to the school lunchroom certain classmates would argue “dirty” but it was difficult to understand why. The “dirty” arguments are called logical fallacies. 

 

There’s a lot to them, hundreds. But what you need to think about are only a couple of things. A logical fallacy is, very informally, an argument that is not about the substance of what is actually being debated. If you can attack something else you don’t have to argue “on the merits.”

 

So you attack the person making the argument — that’s called an *ad hominem* — an attack on the man, as the Latin puts it. “Of course you believe that, you’re a Liberal or a Republican or a Christian (insert your chosen group to discredit here).” Ad Hominem Fallacy is used and the content of the argument is never addressed. 

 

Another way to avoid the true issue is by slightly or completely restating your point to put it in an inaccurate light and attack THAT—that’s a straw man, I’ve created a man from your arguments and attacked that. “Republicans want to destroy the planet", for instance. Straw man. 

 

Another classic one is arguing against your point because of what it can lead to—literally a Slippery Slope fallacy. “If we do THIS, what’s to stop THAT from happening.” 

 

“No True Scotsman” is an important one for the ANTM and my favorite. “No Christian would cheat on his wife.” “John did though?” “Well, no *True Christian* would do that.” This is a tricky one especially for believers because like it says in James our faith is validated, in a sense, by our behaviors. But it’s still an (informal) logical fallacy when used in an argument and worth considering.

 

False dichotomy—Massive one, and especially important for Westerners as the binary thinking we owe to the Greeks has so deeply shaped our very brains. This is anytime we approach an issue from black/white, right/wrong viewpoint, or we set up two choices which aren’t actually related to each other. “How can you be a Christian and vote Republican/Democrat?” For a group like the ANTM where their actual lives are defined by being in or out, either compliant or not, everything is going to be a dichotomy. It’s worth considering. 

 

And so on. There are a many other fallacies in logic to explore and you owe it to yourself to check them out. But there are two things to keep in mind always. 

 

1) Fallacies are arguments that are in some way about *something other than the substance of the argument itself.* Thus they represent, potentially, a dishonest or “dirty” way of arguing. If you call them out in a debate you will win the point. 

 

2) They aren’t always untrue. Some slopes are slippery and although that’s a bad way to look at the world, sometimes it’s potentially accurate. 

 

On any journey to mental clarity, understanding formal logic is one of the most important first stops. How are you getting bulldozed in arguments or discussions where you by rights —the substance of the argument—should be “winning” but you keep falling behind? More importantly, what are the ways your brain “cheats” to keep you from important and critical self-diagnosis and situational awareness? 

 

You can get the education that you need on Logical Fallacies from Wikipedia or visit The Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy for an exhaustive listing and explanation of fallacies with examples.