Learn the 10 Commandments of Rational Debate and use them against your enemy as you obliterate
their argument point by point (rationally, of course)
. Knowing your logical fallacies and how the brain
can deceive even the brightest of minds is the first
step towards winning an argument. These are 10 of the more popular logical fallacies,
but there are many others you need to learn in order to master the art of debate… The 10 Commandments of Rational Debate



1. Though shall not attack the person’ character, but the argument itself. (“Ad
hominem”) Example: Dave listens to Marilyn Manson, therefore his arguments against certain parts of religion are
worthless. After all, would you trust someone who
listens to that devil worshiper?


2. Though shall not misrepresent or exaggerate
a person’s argument in order to make them
easier to attack. (“Straw Man Fallacy”) Example: After Jimmy said that we should put more money into health and education, Steve
responded by saying that he was surprised that
Jimmy hates our country so much that he wants to
leave it defenceless by cutting military spending.


3. Though shall not use small numbers to
represent the whole. (“Hasty Generalization”) Example: Climate Change Deniers take a small sample set of data to demonstrate that the Earth is
cooling, not warming. They do this by zooming in
on 10 years of data, ignoring the trend that is
present in the entire data set which spans a
century.


4. Though shall not argue thy position by
assuming one of its premises is true. (“Begging
the Question”) Example: Sheldon: “God must exist.”
Wilbert: “How do you know?”
Sheldon: “Because the Bible says so.”
Wilbert: “Why should I believe the Bible?”
Sheldon: “Because the Bible was written by God.”
Wilbert: “WTF?” Here, Sheldon is making the assumption that the
Bible is true, therefore his premise – that God exists
– is also true.


5. Though shall not claim that because
something occurred before, but must be the
cause. (“Post Hoc/False Cause”). This can also be read as “correlation does not imply
causation”. Example: There were 3 murders in Dallas this week and on each day, it was raining. Therefore,
murders occur on rainy days.


6. Though shall not reduce the argument down
to only two possibilities when there is a clear
middle ground. (“False Dichotomy”) Example: You’re either with me, or against me. Being neutral is not an option.


7. Though shall not argue that because of our
ignorance, the claim must be true or false. (“Ad
Ignorantiam”). Example: 95% of unidentified flying objects have been explained. 5% have not. Therefore, the 5%
that are unexplained prove that aliens exist.


8. Though shall not lay the burn of proof onto
him that is questioning the claim. (“Burden of
Proof Reversal”). Example: Marcy claims she sees the ghosts of dead people, then challenges you to prove her wrong.
The burden of proof is on Marcy, not you, since
Marcy made the extraordinary claim. 9. Though shall not assume that “this” follows
“that”, when “it” has no logical connection.
(“Non Sequitur”). Similar, but the difference between the post hoc
and non sequitur fallacies is that, whereas the post
hoc fallacy is due to lack of a causal connection, in
the non sequitur fallacy, the error is due to lack of a
logical connection. Example: If you do not buy this Vitamin X supplements for your infant, you are neglecting
your her.


10. Though shall not claim that because a
premise is popular, therefore, it must be true.
(“Bandwagon Fallacy”). Example: Just because a celebrity like Dr. Oz endorses a product, it doesn’t make it any more
legitimate.

Source: www.relativelyinteresting.com/10-commandments-rational-debate-logical-fallacies-explained/