Recommended Practice: Fallacies of Evidence Handout #1

Indicate the fallacy of evidence committed by each italicized and red passage: 

1)    Child: I swear I was at my friend’s house.

     Parent: I still think you were somewhere else.  You haven’t provided any proof.

 

2)    Parent: Why do you think you failed your test?

     Child: ’Cause I either failed it or I got an ‘A’; and I didn’t get an ‘A’.

 

3)    Parent: I know why you failed your test.

     Child: Why?

     Parent: I think you failed it because you play those silly video games. You’re playing them almost every day.

 

4)    Child: You always say I’m lying.  You said it just yesterday.

 

5)    Child: Most parents lie to their kids.  After all, my two parents do.

 

6)    Child: But I’m ready to go out on my first date. 

     Parent: I think you shouldn’t do it.  If you do, you’ll start dating, then you’ll fall in love, then you’ll get married, your spouse will disappoint you, you’ll get divorced, and you’ll end up being bitter.

 

7)    Child: But I don’t want to go to college right after high school.

     Parent: I think you should.  If you don’t, you’ll become seduced by money, accumulate credit card debt, be unable to go to college full-time, and will end up regretting your decision.

 

8)    Student #1: The only reason Jeff went to U.C. Santa Cruz is because his sister went there.

     Student #2: Why do you think that?

     Student #1: It's obvious; for he was going to U.C. Berkeley and now he's going to U.C. Santa Cruz.

     Student #2: Is his sister even going there?  

 

9)    Student #1: I just shouldn't go to college.  

     Student #2: Why do you think that?  

     Student #1: Well, it's either that or go to Stanford; and I'm not getting into Stanford.  

 

10)    Student #1: I don't see what's wrong with dropping out of college.  It's not like I'm a criminal. 

     Student #2: And that makes it okay? 

 

11)    Of course most Scientologists believe that earth was inhabited by space aliens 75 million years ago.  After all, my Aunt Julia is a Scientologist; and she believes it..

 

12)    I'm telling you, the only reason Hector is reading a Scientology book is because his Aunt Julia asked him.  Think about it.  She gave him the book and now he's reading it. 

 

13)    I’m telling you, astrology is a pseudoscience.  For it’s either a pseudoscience or everything modern astrophysicists say is false; and everything astrophysicists say isn’t false.

 

14)    I don't care what you think.  Astronomy can't explain everything.  So, there's something to astrology.  

 

15)   I’m serious.  When your child attends a Waldorf school, they try to convince you that your child is harmed by other schools and then, once you’re convinced, they start charging you over $1000 a month to attend their school.  So don’t send your child to a Waldorf school.

 

16)    Oh, there's nothing wrong with sending your child to a Waldorf school.  It's not like they brainwash the kids. 

 

17)  Think about it.  No one has been able to explain how Oswald could, by himself, have assassinated President Kennedy.  Of course he didn’t do it by himself (if he was involved at all).

 

18) Well, either Oswald was Kennedy's sole assassin or it was a C.I.A. conspiracy; and it wasn't a C.I.A. conspiracy.  Therefore, it's safe to say Oswald was Kennedy's sole assassin.  

 

19) I’m telling you, September 11, 2001’s terrorist attacks were the result of a Bush Administration plot.  After all, a couple years before those attacks, many of the officials participated in a report that called for military action against Afghanistan and Iraq, but claimed it was unlikely unless there was another “Pearl Harbor-like event.”

 

20)  If you ask me, we should investigate the Bush Administration's handling of September 11th; for we never have. 

 

21) Of course God exists.  I’ve never seen proof against God’s existence. 

 

22) Of course you shouldn't believe in God.  That's such an outdated notion. 

 

23) I'm telling you, St. John’s Wart relieved my depression.  My depression disappeared after I took it. 

 

24) If you ask me, you might as well try St. John's Wart.  If you don't, your depression might get worse.  

 

25) I’m telling you, it’s common for children to be violent after watching entertainment violence.  It happens to my nephew.

 

26) You got a choice.  You can either not expose your child to any video games or you can watch your child become addicted to video games.  So, I think it's best not to let your child play video games. 

 

27) There are lots of reasons abortion should be illegal.  For example, the violent crime rate will escalate if abortion remains legal.  

 

28) Of course abortion should be legal.  Only religious extremists think it should be illegal. 

 

29) Imagine the following is an ad for the McDoolittle Diet: 

     You got a choice.  You can keep eating  hamburgers or you can join the McDoolittle family; and you know you can’t keep eating those greasy hamburgers.

 

30) Imagine the following is an ad for the McDoolittle Diet: 

     With McDoolittle everything is possible

 

31)  Of course God doesn't exist.  No one has been able to prove otherwise. 

 

32) People have been believing in a god for thousands of years.  If there wasn't a god, people would stop believing by now.  So there's got to be a god. 

 

33)  Well, I think the President’s tax cuts created 100,000 jobs.  The jobs appeared the year after the tax cuts. 

 

34) We definitely should support the President's effort to abolish the income tax, since we haven't tried that in over a hundred years. 

 

35)  There are a lot of reasons to brush your teeth.  For example, when you don’t, no one will want to kiss you.

 

36) The only reason he brushed his teeth is his aunt promised to take him swimming; for they went swimming right after he brushed his teeth. 

 

37) Julian and I think he’s a terrible teacher.  So, I’m pretty sure most students would, too.

 

38) I'm telling you, Ms. McKenzie is a terrible teacher.  Most of her students think so. 

 

39)  Mark- Well, you should buy a sports car or a motorcycle; but you shouldn’t by a motorcycle; so you should buy a sports car.

Hector- Or I can save my money.

 

40) I can't think of any good reason to save your money.  I think it follows that you shouldn't save it.  

 

41)    Lawyer: Todd Willingham must have killed his own three kids.  The four of them were the only people in their house when the kids died. 

 

42)  Lawyer: Ladies and gentlemen of the jury.  You must convict this man; for, if you don’t, he’s just going to keep killing people until someone stops him. 

 

43)  Dwayne: Willingham must have killed his own three kids; for it’s either that or all three kids died from natural causes on the same day; and that definitely didn’t happen. 

Dwight: Or someone else killed them?

 

44)  Bridget: Of course most murders are committed by men.  Not only did Todd Willingham murder his own kids; but the last three people convicted of murder in Sonoma County have been men.

Daniel: Well, I wouldn’t be surprised if your conclusion is correct; but that argument didn’t come close to proving it.

 

45) Bridget: If you think Todd Willingham was innocent, then you just aren’t thinking critically; so you obviously aren’t thinking critically, since you seem to think he was innocent.

Daniel: Actually, I said “Not guilty.”  I didn’t say “innocent.” 

 

46) I've never heard any good argument for capital punishment.  That's good enough for me to say we shouldn't execute criminals. 

 

47) I don't see what's wrong with capital punishment.  These murderers are animals. 

 

48) It's not like we stone convicts to death.  I don't see what's wrong with capital punishment.  

 

49) Of course capital punishment lowered the crime rate in Texas.  The crime rate went down after Texas reinstated capital punishment. 

 

50) We better not abolish capital punishment; for, if we do that, the crime rate will get out of control.