2006-09-07 14:40:39 · 5 answers · asked by Anonymous in Arts & Humanities ➔ Philosophy
Let's say I have the following argument.
I believe that abortion is wrong because the unborn fetus should have rights. We should give it those rights because it has the potential to become a great person. The next Einstein, or Mother Teresa could be born anytime, but we choose to abort it instead.
Here is the straw-man counter argument.
You say that a fetus is an "it" you don't say it's a person. People have rights, not "it"s.
Another straw-man counter argument might be.
You are obviously Catholic because you mentioned Mother Teresa. Catholics like you think that life beings at the moment of conception which is medically incorrect. Human life doesn't belong at the moment of conception, and you really shouldn't legally enforce your religion on others.
A valid counter argument could be.
There is just as great of a chance that the fetus will be the next Genghis Khan or Hitler.
Both of the invalid arguments are twisting the original argument into something that it doesn't actually say. It's like putting up a straw man, and then attacking it, instead of attacking the actual argument.
2006-09-07 16:08:32 · answer #1 · answered by Michael M 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
In all seriousness, the "politics" section of this site is absolutely rife with straw man arguments, in which the "asker" falsely assigns beliefs, conduct, or attributes to those he opposes, then calls for his opponents to defend those positions as though they were truly their own. A typical form is, "Why do [those I disagree with] think that [straw man argument mis-stating the opponents' actual position]?". These are also guilty in most cases of the fallacy of false dichotomy or false choices, as well as other logical flaws. A quick look in that section will show you how popular fallacious logic is with politically-minded people.
2006-09-07 22:19:16 · answer #2 · answered by BoredBookworm 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
If you mean "somebody who acts as a front for somebody else’s questionable or illegal activities," then the war on Iraq might be a strawman. It was used to hide the fact that Bush doesn't give a damn about where Osama bin Laden is and isn't even bothering to have people look for him.
2006-09-07 21:46:50 · answer #3 · answered by Edna "Dirrty" Bambrick 1 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Check with Rush Limbaugh.
2006-09-07 21:48:02 · answer #4 · answered by Ned 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Anything written or said by mAnn Cult-er or inSean Hannity
2006-09-07 22:00:54 · answer #5 · answered by James P 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋