Favourite Quotes

bulllee said:

“Information is not knowledge.
Knowledge is not wisdom.
Wisdom is not truth.
Truth is not beauty.
Beauty is not love.
Love is not music.
Music is THE BEST.”
― Frank Zappa

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"Man is the most insane species. He worships an invisible God and destroys a visible Nature. Unaware that this Nature he's destroying is this God he's worshiping." - Hubert Reeves​

florduh said:

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Is it fallacious to appeal to scientific authority when the current consensus is precisely what is in contention? If yes, is this an example of Scientism? If no, why not?

No. No. Category error. Unless you’re publishing in the peer-reviewed literature, the scientific consensus wins. If you don’t like the scientific consensus and you’re not publishing—nobody cares.

For example: ivermectin does not cure or prevent covid. If you argue this with your doctor, they will invoke the scientific consensus and not write you a prescription. If you argue this with your insurance company, they will likewise cite the scientific consensus and not reimburse you. And if you argue this with your local tack and feed store, they’ll ask to see a picture of your horse and, when that isn’t forthcoming, cite the scientific consensus and kick you to the curb. The fact that you really, really want to challenge the scientific consensus doesn’t make the consensus invalid.

Scientism is the belief that scientific inquiry is the only valid form of epistemology. As best I can tell, no one believes this. The term is mostly used to slur your opponents. Arguing that you ought to be allowed to ingest horse dewormer because Jesus told you to is not an effective argument, nor is labelling your opponents with “scientism” because they don't accept divine revelation as a useful guide to pharmacology.

If you want to challenge the scientific consensus effectively, go to grad school.

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Logical fallacies: Seven ways to spot a bad argument

When people are trying to persuade you, they sometimes reach for tricks like the 'appeal to ignorance' or 'whataboutism' to seem more convincing.

www.bbc.com

The Rules of Logic Part 6: Appealing to Authority vs. Deferring to Experts

The appeal to authority fallacy (a.k.a. argument from authority) is easily one of the most common logical fallacies. This is the fallacy that occurs when you base your claim on the people who agree…

thelogicofscience.com

15 Logical Fallacies to Know, With Definitions and Examples

You’ve seen them on social media. You’ve heard them in movie dialogue. Heck, you’ve probably even used them yourself. They’re logical…

www.grammarly.com