When I wrote in response to the recent letter from lawyers and former judges about Israel and Gaza, I highlight that one problem with it was that it encouraged a form of logical fallacy which is known as “appeal to authority”, or if you want to posh term “ad verecundiam.” Fascinatingly, the problem with this… Continue reading The problem with the “appeal to authority” fallacy
Tag: logical fallacies
Assessing motives (what we can and cannot do)
Jesus is able to assess the heart, we cannot. This means a good rule of thumb when dealing with others in debate is that we should seek to respond to what they are actually saying, not what their motives or intentions are. Indeed, we should seek to assume the best of others, taking a charitable… Continue reading Assessing motives (what we can and cannot do)
Qualifications matter -why an appeal to authority isn’t always wrong
A follow on from the Douglas Carswell tweet which I mentioned in the previous post was, a twitter interaction with someone that went something as follows: Them: “The WHO have been dreadful during the virus. A lot of the measures including the 2 metre rule are nonsense.” Me: “Are you a doctor or epidemiologist? Do… Continue reading Qualifications matter -why an appeal to authority isn’t always wrong
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