Whyte - Crimes against logic: exposing the bogus arguments of politicians, priests, journalists, and other serial offenders

Copyright 2005 by Jamie Whyte. All rights reserved. Except as permitted under the United States Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced or distributed in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the publisher.

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All self-help books should begin with a confession. Here is mine: I write letters to the editor. Outraged of London, thats me. I am getting better, though. I often dont send the letters, and sometimes I dont even write them. If I had a therapist, he would be pleased by my progress.

But I must also confess that there has been no deep reform of my character. I still want to write those letters. Its just that what gets me so riled doesnt seem to be of the least interest to the editor of the London Times. Nor to my increasingly fewer friends, who yawn and roll their eyes as I explain my concernsor rant, as the less kind among them say.

What bothers me so much?

Errors in reasoning. Fallacies. Muddled thinking. Call it what you like; you know the kind of thing I mean.

Because you have chosen to read a book with the title Crimes Against Logic, you may be more sympathetic than my friends and the editor of the Times. And sympathy is called for. The modern world is a noxious environment for those of us bothered by logical error. People may have become no worse at reasoning, but they now have so many more opportunities to show off how bad they are. If anyone cared about our suffering, talk radio and oped pages would be censored. Even Congress is now broadcast, as if no torment were too great.

Why are we protesters so lonely? Why dont the other consumers of all this defective thinking complain to the supplier, and to whoever else will listen, as they would if their washing machines leaked or their cars wouldnt start?

The simple answer is that most people dont notice the problem. When a car breaks down, anyone can see that it has even if he knows nothing about how cars work. Reasoning is different. Unless you know how reasoning can go wrong, you cant see that it has. The talking doesnt stop, no steam emerges from the ears, the eyes dont flash red. Perhaps one day someone will design a device whereby logical errors set off some such alarm, and no politician, journalist, or businessperson will be allowed to speak without having the device applied. Until that happy day, however, we must all rely on our own ability to spot errors in reasoning.

Alas, most know next to nothing about the ways reasoning can go wrong. Schools and universities pack their minds with invaluable pieces of informationabout the nitrogen cycle, the causes of World War II, iambic pentameter, and trigonometrybut leave them incapable of identifying even basic errors of logic. Which makes for a nation of suckers, unable to resist the bogus reasoning of those who want something from them, such as votes or money or devotion.

Many instead defend themselves with cynicism, discounting everything said by anyone in a position of power or influence. But cynicism is a poor defense, because it doesnt help to tell good reasoning from bad. Believing nothing is just as silly as believing everything. Cynicism, like gullibility, is a symptom of underdeveloped critical faculties.

This book aims to help fill the gap left by the education system. But it is not a textbook. It is the logic equivalent of one of those troubleshooting guides in your car or computer manual. It is aimed at everyday users and consumers of reasoning, which is everyone, and covers those errors in reasoning that are commonly encountered, especially when discussing or debating controversial topics. Each of the twelve chapters is devoted to one such fallacy.

Once pointed out, it is easy to see that they are fallacies. Harder is spotting them in everyday life. Most of the book is therefore devoted to discussing examples. Some are imaginary but of such a familiar kind that you will have no trouble recalling real cases you have encountered. More, however, are real examples, drawn from politics, theology, business, and where-ever people engage in reasoned debateor what passes for it.

For Mariam Rachel, co-gestater

Know your rights!

So we are advised by all sorts of well-meaners. When I was an undergraduate student, activists wanted me to know the rights that protected me against police harassment. Having dutifully learned them, I was disappointed never to encounter the expected harassment. Now I receive pamphlets telling me that I may have a right to various kinds of government assistance, including money. Alas, the result of inquiry is always the discovery that I dont qualify. As with cheap flights, conditions apply, and it seems that I am the citizens equivalent of someone who wants to fly to Sydney at Christmas.