# Informal Logical Fallacies **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [March 9, 2010, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/informal-logical-fallacies/531904 "2010-03-09T21:02:34Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Diamonds02](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b5a626/32.png) [@Diamonds02](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diamonds02)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2010, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/informal-logical-fallacies/531904/1 "2010-03-09T21:02:34Z")
Well, super informal logical fallacies (ones that you made up)… [Here’s a list of regular informal logical fallacies.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_logical_fallacies#Informal_fallacies) What sort of informal logical fallacies have you noticed in arguments, that aren’t listed above? ---
**Author:** ![figure9](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/f0a364/32.png) [@figure9](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/figure9)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2010, 12:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/informal-logical-fallacies/531904/2 "2010-03-10T00:55:13Z")
The I’M RIGHT BECAUSE I SAID IT LOUDER THAN YOU!!! fallacy. Statistics. ---
**Author:** ![Superfluous\_Parentheses](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8edcca/32.png) [@Superfluous\_Parentheses](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superfluous_Parentheses)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2010, 1:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/informal-logical-fallacies/531904/3 "2010-03-10T01:08:16Z")
> [@figure9](#): > > Statistics. And its cousin: outright lies. Also “This can’t be true because it doesn’t make me feel good”, sometimes followed by “and you must be a pervert if you believe it anyway”. ---
**Author:** ![Lumpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lumpy/32/446_2.png) [@Lumpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lumpy)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2010, 1:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/informal-logical-fallacies/531904/4 "2010-03-10T01:18:23Z")
There’s “You insulted me, and it doesn’t matter what else you say because that’s NOT what we’re talking about now, we’re talking about how you INSULTED me and how utterly completely wrong you were to do it, and how you now have NO credibility at all.” ---
**Author:** ![BlackKnight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/eb8c5e/32.png) [@BlackKnight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BlackKnight)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2010, 1:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/informal-logical-fallacies/531904/5 "2010-03-10T01:19:18Z")
(Circular) Argument from Assumed Bias Example - A writer publishes a story about Mr. Politician. It contains many scandalous details. Defenders of Mr. Politician argue as follows - (1) The article is against Mr. Politician, hence (2) the writer is biased against Mr. Politician, hence (3) we have good reason to doubt the story. (After all, the story was written by a biased author. And we know he was biased because he wrote a negative article about Mr. Politician.) And of course enemies of Mr. Politician are likely to fall for the “Where there’s smoke, there’s fire” fallacy - (1) An article alleging serious misdeeds was written about Mr. Politician; (2) Mr. Politician is thus the sort of guy people write negative articles about, therefore (3) the allegations are probably true. ---
**Author:** ![Sehmket](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a183cd/32.png) [@Sehmket](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sehmket)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2010, 2:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/informal-logical-fallacies/531904/6 "2010-03-10T02:21:19Z")
[quote=“figure9, post:2, topic:531904”] The I’M RIGHT BECAUSE I SAID IT LOUDER THAN YOU!!! fallacy. QUOTE] _sigh_ One of the guys I game with has started using this one. It’s even more infuriating since he started it on a rules discussion on a message board. Now, I realize that it can be easy to raise your voice and not realize it, but it’s hard to type in all caps with multiple exlimation marks and not realize you sound like a dolt. He also included “XXX is better than YYY. PERIOD!” Yes, because adding the word “PERIOD” makes us believe you. ---
**Author:** ![VarlosZ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/d78d45/32.png) [@VarlosZ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VarlosZ)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2010, 2:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/informal-logical-fallacies/531904/7 "2010-03-10T02:28:55Z")
“I’m special because I’m right.” This is the belief — usually implicit but sometimes maintainted explicitly — that a certain tactic or behavior which is generally considered onerous is permitted for those who believe as the speaker does, because theirs is the actually correct side, and the truth need brook no compromise. The problem, of course, is that _everyone_ believes themselves to be correct, so to embrace this way of thinking is to embrace rudeness, underhandedness, or what-have-you from all sides in disputes generally. ---
**Author:** ![Paul\_in\_Qatar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ccd318/32.png) [@Paul\_in\_Qatar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Paul_in_Qatar)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2010, 2:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/informal-logical-fallacies/531904/8 "2010-03-10T02:32:45Z")
It is true because of technical quibbles. (States can leave the Union because it does not say they cannot leave the Union.) (I never had sex with that woman.) (I never question the loyalty of lawyers who defended terrorists.) ---
**Author:** ![Taomist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/53a042/32.png) [@Taomist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Taomist)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2010, 2:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/informal-logical-fallacies/531904/9 "2010-03-10T02:37:30Z")
> [@VarlosZ](#): > > “I’m special because I’m right.” Don’t forget the ‘I’m right because I’m special’, because nobody else in the whole world has ever gone through what I have gone through and I am a unique snowflake! urrk ---
**Author:** ![Civil\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/d78d45/32.png) [@Civil\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Civil_Guy)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2010, 4:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/informal-logical-fallacies/531904/10 "2010-03-10T04:50:00Z")
The convenient appeal to majority support. As in: If a majority of the public shows through voting or polling that they support the given position, then the position is supported by ‘the will of the people.’ If not, the public has obviously been deluded by those nefarious scoundrels on the other side of the issue, and it’s our bounden duty to re-educate them, probably by demonstrating what we can accomplish by putting our ideas into practice. The public is bound to come around to our side sooner or later. If not, though, it’s still for their own good. ---
**Author:** ![thirdwarning](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecccb3/32.png) [@thirdwarning](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thirdwarning)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2010, 5:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/informal-logical-fallacies/531904/11 "2010-03-10T05:49:03Z")
> [@figure9](#): > > The I’M RIGHT BECAUSE I SAID IT LOUDER THAN YOU!!! fallacy. How about, “I’m right because I said it last/ I repeated it until you got tired.” Otherwise known as the ‘yes it is/ no it isn’t’ fallacy. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2010, 7:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/informal-logical-fallacies/531904/12 "2010-03-10T07:41:13Z")
> [@Lumpy](#): > > There’s “You insulted me, and it doesn’t matter what else you say because that’s NOT what we’re talking about now, we’re talking about how you INSULTED me and how utterly completely wrong you were to do it, and how you now have NO credibility at all.” I’m right, so I shouldn’t have to apologize for being rude to you. People seem to forget that the whole point of arguing with someone is to convince them that you are right. If you insult them, you’ve put them on the defensive. Which goes with the biggest fallacy of all: People think logically, and if my position is logically sound, I will win any debate. ---
**Author:** ![EvilTOJ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ee59a6/32.png) [@EvilTOJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EvilTOJ)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2010, 8:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/informal-logical-fallacies/531904/13 "2010-03-10T08:21:16Z")
> [@thirdwarning](#): > > How about, “I’m right because I said it last/ I repeated it until you got tired.” > > Otherwise known as the ‘yes it is/ no it isn’t’ fallacy. An argument is a connected series of statements to establish a definite proposition. It’s an intellectual process … contradiction is just the automatic gainsaying of anything the other person says. ---
**Author:** ![Alka\_Seltzer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c89c15/32.png) [@Alka\_Seltzer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alka_Seltzer)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2010, 11:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/informal-logical-fallacies/531904/14 "2010-03-10T11:51:26Z")
The “lies, damned lies, and statistics” fallacy, where all statistics are assumed to be suspect. When done properly, statistics are a great way of getting an understandable window on something, but many people will reject any argument based on statistics out of hand. ---
**Author:** ![Alka\_Seltzer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c89c15/32.png) [@Alka\_Seltzer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alka_Seltzer)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2010, 11:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/informal-logical-fallacies/531904/15 "2010-03-10T11:52:53Z")
The “I’m having a bad day” fallacy, where special weight is given to an argument due to unrelated suffering. ---
**Author:** ![Smeghead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2010, 12:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/informal-logical-fallacies/531904/16 "2010-03-10T12:12:50Z")
If you disagree with me, it’s because you’re too stupid to understand my position. ---
**Author:** ![AskNott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asknott/32/5790_2.png) [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2010, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/informal-logical-fallacies/531904/17 "2010-03-10T15:21:39Z")
If I write a lot of stuff on a blackboard, with circles and arrows, it must be true. ---
**Author:** ![Spice\_Weasel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spice_weasel/32/5435_2.png) [@Spice\_Weasel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spice_Weasel)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2010, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/informal-logical-fallacies/531904/18 "2010-03-10T15:27:58Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > People seem to forget that the whole point of arguing with someone is to convince them that you are right. If you insult them, you’ve put them on the defensive. Which goes with the biggest fallacy of all: I agree with you in principle about the counter-productivity of meanness, but I don’t argue to convince the other person I’m right. I argue to convince the quiet, undecided types. My contribution is, ‘‘That can’t be true because I wouldn’t like the consequences.’’ Happens a lot here. ---
**Author:** ![Haunted\_Pasta](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/94ad74/32.png) [@Haunted\_Pasta](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Haunted_Pasta)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2010, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/informal-logical-fallacies/531904/19 "2010-03-10T16:10:54Z")
The opposite of the “My opinion = fact”, where facts are just opinions. This is disturbingly common among the fundamentalist set, where science is not to be trusted and the common man knows more than the expert. A related fallacy: Intelligence = elitism. ---
**Author:** ![Lumpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lumpy/32/446_2.png) [@Lumpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lumpy)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2010, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/informal-logical-fallacies/531904/20 "2010-03-10T17:16:29Z")
> [@EvilTOJ](#): > > … contradiction is just the automatic gainsaying of anything the other person says. No it’s not. 😛 [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/informal-logical-fallacies/531904.md?page=2)