Sample Fallacies

(taken from http://www.faculty.whatcom.ctc.edu/tprinceh/fallacie.htm)

Identify the fallacies in the following statements and explain the errors in reasoning. Then pick 2 and revise them so they make a valid claim.

1.      Dinosaurs were once the most successful animals on Earth. They overpopulated and became extinct. Currently, humans are the predominate species on the planet; likewise, we are doomed to die out because our population is escalating out of control.

2.      All criminals molest children and clearly shouldn’t be teaching in public schools.

3.      The President said, "I feel confident that Mr. Smith will fulfill the duties of U.S. Supreme court justice with fairness and expertise. He is a devoted father and has organized a food drive for homeless children."

4.      You collect only the finest wines, and you know exquisite style when you see it. That’s why you drive the new Cadillac Seville.

5.      Chinese women are shy and passive. My cousin’s wife is Chinese, and she never talks.

6.      The way I see it, we have two choices. We can drill in the Alaskan wilderness, or we can run out of fossil fuels and quit driving cars.

7.      According to Ross Grandville, an executive at Philip Morris company, tobacco is not in itself addictive.

8.      The U.S. government should restrict immigration from Mexico and Latin America. After all, I want to keep my job. Don’t you?

9.      If we outlaw logging in old growth forests, then pretty soon we won’t be able to log on forest service land either. From there it’s just a matter of time before the logging industry fails and thousands of people are out of work.

10. Millions of Americans have already discovered the joys of the Sleeping Beauty mattress. Could millions of Americans be wrong?

11. American human rights activists claim we should boycott Nike products in order to protest working conditions in the company’s overseas factories. These activists are ignoring the fact that poverty and injustice are problems in the U.S., too.

12. There is no ethical problem with wearing animal fur. When fur was out of style, several fashion models refused to wear it. As soon as it was back in style, though, those same models were sporting mink coats.

Answer Key: Sample Fallacies

Below are the definitions that best fit the sample fallacies.  Some types of fallacies are very similar to each other. You may propose others that ‘fit’.  You must back up your claims, however.

1.   false analogy

2.   begging the question 

3.   straw man/red herring

4.   snob appeal *

5.   hasty generalization

6.   hasty generalization

7.   over reliance of authority

8.   sob story/equivocating

9.   slippery slope

10.         sob story

11.         red herring

12.           failing to accept the burden of proof