Have Something to Say? Making Arguments That Make Sense

I think it's safe to say that most of us here on current have strong opinions and feel the need to voice them in one way or another. (Otherwise, why else would we be here?) But what is anyone's opinion really worth? We've all got them, but one's opinion doesn't really amount to much unless he/she can back it up.

I've read a lot of heated arguments here on current, and each side of every issue has its share of flawed arguments. People have very firm convictions, yet the reasoning they use to try and convince you they're right just doesn't add up. We often let our passions speak for us rather than our logic. (I'll be honest; I'm guilty of this too, sometimes.)

So, in the interest of raising the level of dialogue, I've provided some examples of common fallacies and tips on how to avoid them. (Note: In order to be clear and concise, I've tried to avoid using 'technical' verbiage as much as possible.)

--Generalizing: "Selling drugs is a crime. Pharmacists sell drugs. Pharmacists are criminals." To avoid this, be specific in your argument. "Selling illegal drugs is a crime."

--Stereotyping: "All Republicans I've met oppose gay rights, therefore all Republicans are against gay rights." What can I say… there are Republicans who support gay rights. (There are even some gay Republicans.) There are pro-life Democrats and pro-choice Republicans. Stereotyping is just wrong. Don't do it.

--Begging the Question: "The book, 'Patriotic American' says Jane Doe would be a great president. 'Patriotic American' is a reliable source of information because it was written by Jane Doe." To avoid this fallacy, don't support your conclusions with evidence that assumes your conclusion is correct.

--Affirming the Consequent: "Drinking too much alcohol will make you sick. John is sick, therefore he must have drunk too much alcohol." To avoid this, keep in mind that there may be several different ways to arrive at the same result.

--Denying the Antecedent: "Every time Senator Smith is on a talk show he is bashing the other side. The Senator is not on any shows this week, so he must not be bashing the opposition right now." Obviously, a politician doesn't need to be in front of a camera to smear his/her opponents. Don't assume that because you've seen a connection between two or more things/events in the past that they cannot exist independent of each other.

--Substituting Opinion for Fact: "I believe big business is bad for America, therefore all large corporations are bad." Explain why you feel the way you do.

--Red Herring: "The proposed tax law is a bad idea because its sponsor, Representative Jones was caught cheating on his wife." This tactic is used to divert attention away from the topic at hand. If your support isn't relevant to your conclusion, then it's not really support. Don't use it.

--False Cause: "Mary took medicine X and later developed cancer. Medicine X causes cancer." Medicine X could be as benign as aspirin and Mary could have developed cancer because she smoked for 50 years. Do your research and don't form opinions without knowing as many of the facts as possible.

Remember, good arguments have support that's relevant and based on fact. Put some time into it and you'll better yourself, you'll better your argument and you'll improve the conversation here on current.