Posted by JWGenXer [JWGenXer] on March 29, 1999 at 13:32:13 {h6Kq9n9lQo9ppmGrLD/kMWKa1IL8vfxqU}:
In Reply to: *Request To aLL !? posted by Seeker on March 29, 1999 at 11:39:22:
Of course, all this stuff is used by anit-JW's too.
Ad Hominem Attacks (argumentum ad hominem): attacking a person's character instead of the
content of that person's argument.
"JW's are robots and can't think for themselves anyway."
Argument From Ignorance (argumentum ad ignorantiam): concluding that something is true since you can't prove it is false.
"There must not be a God, since no one can demonstrate that he does exist."
Appeal To Pity
(argumentum ad misericordiam): appealing to a person's unfortunate circumstance
as a way of getting someone to accept a conclusion.
"Don't be so hard on the Apostates, they have been so brutally shunned and are really good people searching for the truth"
Argumentum Ad Populum: going along with the crowd in support of a conclusion.
"Everyone with their eyes open know that there are satanic pictures in the illustrations of WTS publications."
Appeal To
Authority (argumentum ad verecundiam): appealing to a popular figure who is not an
authority in that area.
"Gloria Estefan/John Denver doesn't like JW's, therefore it must be a cult."
Non Sequitur (irrelevant conclusion): drawing
a conclusion which does not follow from the
evidence.
"President "Booze" was the second president of the Watchtower Society, and he eaned heavily on the bottle. Nothing could make him more furious than
someone trying to take away
his bottle.."
False Cause (post hoc ergo procter hoc): inferring a causal connection based on mere correlation.
Just look at Tallyman's post about the Non-JW in NC who killed his kids and then shot himself. The WT had to be at fault somewhere there...
Begging The Question (petitio principii): implicitly using your conclusion as a premise.
"Naturally the Watchtower leaders knew this, but instead they let Frost white wash his past on this convention! Is there
something those people do not lie about?."
OR
"This has all been posted in the past, but as these rules keep being violated by the JW's who post here, this can be a good reminder."
Red Herring: introducing an irrelevant or secondary subject and thereby diverting attention from the main subject.
"Apostates never lie, and, besides, they are wonderful people who are really searching for the truth."
Straw Man: distorting an opposing view so that it is easy to refute.
"You should avoid JW's, since JW's don't believe in Medical Treatment."