Exam 3: Informal Fallacies

Steel wool is excellent for cleaning dirty pots and pans. Therefore, it would be a good idea to use steel wool to clean your dirty car.

Which of the following fallacies always involves two arguers?

Given the argument, "All cats are animals, and some animals are mammals; thus, some cats are mammals." This argument:

Jason's quartz watch runs about 3 years and 4 months on a fresh battery. Therefore, probably David's watch, which is the same make and model as Jason's, runs about 3 years and 4 months on a fresh battery.

The president of our college has promised to stop drinking on campus. Apparently the president has a drinking problem.

Nobody has ever seen Mr. Fearnside drive a car. He does own a car, though, but his wife is the only one to drive it. Therefore, probably Mr. Fearnside doesn't drive.

Either you abstain from alcohol completely or one of these days you'll get arrested for drunk driving. So, what will it be?

Richard has been doing very poorly in biology this term. Therefore, he should schedule an appointment with the professor so he can criticize and berate her teaching ability.

Professor Stevens, the great English scholar, says that Chaucer's Canterbury Tales represents a milestone in the development of the English language. Therefore, the Canterbury Tales must indeed be a milestone, just as he says.

Members of the jury, surely defendant Jones is not guilty of kidnapping the little girl. Jones loves children dearly, and during the first ten years of his marriage he prayed every day for a child. Finally, his wife gave birth to a little boy, but then she and the boy were killed in a car accident.

Professor Wilson argues that it is absolutely wrong for students to plagiarize their work. But who is she to talk? I have it on good evidence that Wilson plagiarized her own work when she was a student.

It would be a mistake to provide new gloves to the school's baseball players. In no time the football players will want new equipment. Then the tennis players will want new courts, the hockey players will want a new arena, the swimmers will want a new pool, and the golfers will want their own special course. The costs for these facilities will go through the roof.

My dear, you shouldn't hesitate a minute before buying a new mink coat. Real fur is in right now, and a full mink is the ultimate in fashion. It tells the whole world that you have exquisite taste and the financial means to express it.

People don't have to go to college to make a lot of money. Look at Richard Branson, Chairman of the Virgin Group. He's a billionaire, yet he was a terrible student, and he dropped out of school when he was sixteen.

Barbara argues that we should develop fuel cell cars that run more efficiently with less pollution. But look at what Barbara drives. It's one of those gas guzzling SUVs that pollute like a steam locomotive. Obviously Barbara's argument is worthless.

Smooth, round stones apparently have the power to cure the flu. The last time Harriet got the flu, she put 10 smooth, round stones in her left pocket, and each day she transferred one of them to her right pocket. After all the stones were transferred, the flu was gone! Many others have tried this cure, and it has worked every time.

Fred's argument in favor of lowering the gasoline tax is totally absurd. Fred is a complete loser who has never held a responsible job, and in his darker moments he abuses animals and torments small children.

Betty is opposed to capital punishment by lethal injection. But doctors inject patients with all sorts of medicines every day. For example, vaccines against flu, pneumonia, and tetanus are injected into millions of patients. Antibiotics are injected for a whole host of bacterial infections, and insulin is injected for diabetes. Obviously Betty's views are not supported by the evidence.

United States Marshals are allowed to carry loaded guns in the courtroom. But attorneys are officers of the court, no less than U.S. Marshals. Therefore, attorneys are allowed to carry loaded guns in the courtroom.

No one has ever proved that smoking small amounts of marijuana over long periods of time is harmful. We can therefore conclude that this practice is completely safe.