(derailment, “does not follow,” irrelevant reason, invalid inference, non-support, argument by scenario, false premise, questionable premise) Literally translating as “does not follow,” this fallacy occurs when the conclusion has no logical connection to the premise. All formal fallacies are a type of non sequitur (including post hoc, hasty generalization, slippery slope, and many others.) It…

(Cherry-Picking, Card Stacking, Incomplete Information, Texas Sharpshooter, suppressed evidence, fallacy of incomplete evidence, argument by selective observation, argument by half-truth, fallacy of exclusion, ignoring the counter evidence, one-sided assessment, slanting, one-sidedness) Commonly referred to as “cherry-picking,” this fallacy occurs when someone uses an argument that contains some element of truth while selectively omitting important details…

This fallacy proposes a person or thing “is what it is and that’s all that it is” and, at its core, will always be what it is right now. This is related to the fallacious argument that something is a certain way “by nature” or based on its origin (genetic fallacy). This is a fallacy…

(trust me, mother knows best fallacy, because I said so, you’ll see) This fallacy occurs when, instead of giving valid reasons or evidence for a position, someone says, “Because I said so” (or some variety). This is a type of appeal to authority because the individual making the claim is essentially stating that their position,…

(counterfactual fallacy, speculative fallacy, “what if” fallacy, wouldchuck) This fallacy occurs when someone argues that their specific prediction about the present would be true or accurate if a past event had happened differently. It’s fallacious because the premises are based on speculation, not fact or evidence, essentially drawing conclusions from a hypothetical situation as fact.…

(related to “appeal to ignorance”) This fallacy occurs when the burden of proof is placed on the wrong side of an argument. In a logical argument, the “burden of proof” lies with the individual making the claim; in other words, if you claim something, you need to provide the evidence for that claim. When you…

(argument from the club, appeal to the stick, Argumentum ad Baculum, argument to the cudgel) A combination of both the appeal to consequences and appeal to emotion, this fallacy occurs when someone uses coercion, intimidation, psychological pressure, force, or threat of force (direct or indirect) as a means of persuasion. It’s fallacious when the threat…

(Circular Reasoning, Big Lie Technique, Staying on Message, petition principia – “assuming the initial point”) A type of circular reasoning, this fallacy occurs when the conclusion you are trying to prove is part of your premise. The initial premise is assumed to be correct without any evidence supporting it and often occurs when assumptions are…