Assignment

Readings Required:

Ch. 9: "A Logician's View: Deducion, Induction, Fallacies

Answer the following in 150-300 words.

Below are some fallacies in action. Identify the logical fallacies, some may only have one, for each scenario. Expalin what has gone wrong in the fallacies. Be specific in your reasoning.

1. DeLay argues that stem-cell research is immoral. But DeLay is an ultra right-wing lunatic who's incapable of thinking objectively. Obviously his argument is non-sense.

2. Barbara Striesand, Paul Newman and Julia Roberts are Democrats. Therefore all Hollywood stars are Democrats.

3. Smirnoff is the best vodka available: renowned violinist Pichas Zukerman says, "When it comes to vodka, Smirnof plays second fiddle to none."

4. If a car breaks down on the freeway, a passing mechanic is not required to stop and provide road service. Likewise, if a person has a heart attack on the street, a passing physician is not obligated to render emergency medical care.

5. When water is poured over a pile of rocks, it always trickles down to the very bottom. Similarly, when rich people make lots of money, we can expect this to trickle down to the less fortunate.

6. Aborion is murder-and it doesn't matter whether we're talking about killing a human embryo or a human fetus.