Fallacies

In short, fallacies are defined as "a misleading or unsound argument." So a no-no when in an argument. Most people are surprised at how many fallacies they use in normal life, but many are pretty obvious.
(Many fallacies have latin names, which I have learned them by. Ones that have been coined recently have more English names)


And now, a list with examples-
My favorite fallacy- the ad hominem ("to the man") fallacy. It's defined as an attack against a person's character.

Ex. The President's policy on internet piracy is wrong, because he's black.
In no way is the legitimacy of his position lessened by his race. Now, if the position were something that actually had relevance to someone's race, this might have a ground to stand on, but most people know something is a personal attack.

Cum hoc ergo propter hoc ("with this, therefore because of this")- also known as "Correlation does not imply causation", sometimes shortened to "Correlation, not causation". It's a situation where if something happens in a way that looks like something else caused it, it doesn't mean that one caused the other.
Ex. As a lot of people know, there is an inverse correlation between pirates and global temperatures. In days long ago, there were very many pirates, and pillaging aplenty. Now, there are very few pirates, mostly those in Somalia. And for the same amount of time, global temperatures have been rising. While some people believe this to be a wrong because global warming is caused by carbon emissions accumulating over time, most people now realize that global warming is caused by the Flying Spaghetti Monster.


Post hoc ergo propter hoc ("after this, therefore because of this")- Because A came before B, A caused B.
 It's a lot like the previous fallacy, but with a subtle difference.

Ex. I mowed my lawn, and it rained.  Therefore, me mowing causes it to rain.
We know that mowing the lawn has no effect on the probability of raining.


Non sequitur ("it does not follow")- Basically summed up by its name. An overall category for almost all fallacies.

Ex. A person has tried everything 'modern science' has to cure their aliment. This person then uses Secondary, Complementary, and Alternative Medicines (SCAMs) to try and cure themselves.
Just because you tried everything something can offer, it doesn't mean you should delve into something without any efficacy.

Now we move into the recent ones-
Straw Man- Instead of attacking the person's argument, you attack a completely different one- a straw man.

Ex. Person A believes there shouldn't be life sentences. Person B says that we would need to kill people then, and goes on to prove that killing is wrong. Person A watches in annoyance as Person B brings up points they both agree on, but not at all relevant.


Begging the question- Not at all related to the popular usage (This begs the question of...), it is a fallacy where there is an unproven assumption in your statements.

Ex. Person A asks Person B "Do you enjoy killing people?" No matter what Person B says, there is an assumption that he kills people. While not all uses of this fallacy are this blatant, they can come close.

Pragmatic Fallacy- In simple terms, it's where Person A says Process Z works for them, therefore it is true. "Works" can mean "It makes me happy," or "I like it."

Ex. Since homeopathy/astrology/acupuncture appeals to me, it is true.
Just because they like them doesn't mean they're true.


There are many more fallacies, many requiring experience in them, others sub-fallacies under some other major ones.