Genetic Fallacy

           Logical fallacies can be found everywhere in our culture, for example in Donald Trumps speech of wanting to ban all Muslims from entering the U.S. Often which would be considered a genetic fallacy because it's judging people to be good or bad based on where they come from which would also be considered very stereotypical. He wants to ban all Muslims because he believes they are all terrorists which is a misguided statement.

 

           Donald Trump tends to make many racial remarks during his speeches not only toward Muslims but other races such as Hispanics. He mentioned to send all the immigrants back to their own country. These genetic fallacies should be pointed out so that other people don't think in such a negative way also. Most of the time when a genetic fallacy is stated people tend to follow that believe too. Same with stereotypes; even though its not true people will still start to believe it and even if they don't some still joke about it.

Pepsi Commercial Fallacy

Television Ads are known to stretch reality in hopes to sell more products. Large companies tend to use iconic figures and celebrities to lure consumers into buying their product. In the commercial clip above, a young boy is seen drinking Pepsi and eventually gets to meet and dance with Michael Jackson. The strategy of this fallacy was to connect with viewers emotionally to persuade them to drink Pepsi Cola. Michael Jackson's appearance in the commercial suggests that the King of Pop also enjoys drinking Pepsi.
With Jackson's fame and popularity at an all-time high during the time period of the commercial, we can infer that the ad encouraged viewers to go out and buy a 12-pack of Pepsi. Appealing to emotion is a common way advertising specialists increase sales and ensure buyers are aware of the product. False clause is when a relationship is established into a casual connection. In this clip, you can argue that the purpose of the ad was to establish a relationship between drinking Pepsi and having an opportunity to dance with Michael Jackson. If you drink Pepsi, MJ will appear. Fallacies are used to promote businesses, and attract customers from all over the country for the sake of increases in sales and the company's image.

Hasty Generalization

The logical fallacy I chose is Hasty Generalization. An example for this is saying all Muslims are terrorists. The reason this classifies as a logical fallacy is because anyone who says this is drawing a conclusion on a population based on a sample that is not very large. It is true that there are Muslim groups that are terrorists, and that 9/11 was caused by a terrorist group from the Muslim religion. This does not mean that the majority of Muslims are terrorists. There are also many white, black, and Hispanic terrorists but not many people look at those ethnicities and immediately think "Oh no they have a bomb." Unfortunately in today's world many people listen to others opinions and let that effect their own outlook on a situation.

There are many people that either make jokes or promote stereotypes about Muslims being terrorists and this is what affects peoples specific aspect towards different cultures. A good example of this comes from a Key and Peele skit that uses humor to address the issue of terrorism. Muslim stereotypes are also seen in a cinematic film by the name of "Team America," where puppets run around promoting racial slurs such as "Durka Durka Muhammed G-had." Both of these are examples of how people create negative stereotypes of the Muslim and middle eastern community.

One way people can start to address the fallacy is by actually talking to Muslims instead of avoiding them because of the way they dress. Many people that have this fallacy beaten into their head go as far as calling Muslims out and making rude comments towards them. Once people can start to judge people by actually confronting them and getting to know what they are about, the world should be able to break this fallacy up a bit. People need to learn that all individuals are different and that race and religion don't define a human.

Slippery Slope Fallacy

According to Purdue Owl, a slippery slope is "a conclusion based on the premise that if A happens, then eventually through a series of small steps, through B, C,..., X, Y, Z will happen, too, basically equating A and Z. So, if we don't want Z to occur, A must not be allowed to occur either".

In other words, slippery slope is when a certain event is said to lead to another event, then lead once again to another event and keeps going until a final point is reached where the connection is unjustified and each step becomes more and more questionable or unlikely to happen. It can start with a small first step, and lead to a chain of events typically ending negatively. It leaves readers thinking that you're given multiple events in a situation that are not likely to happen all at the same time.

Here, take a look at the attached video from the Direct Tv commercial: "Don't wake up in a Roadside Ditch" that simply illustrates the slippery slope fallacy.

                                               https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kIv3m2gMgUU

The simple message from this video is: Switch over from cable to Direct Tv or bad things will happen to you and you will simply end up on a ditch. (Slippery Slope)

Direct Tv uses the commercial, "Don't wake up in a roadside ditch", to convey to readers an argument for individual to get Direct Tv or severe consequences would then take place from a minor cause.
The man in the commercial has regular cable and tries to contact the company and gets upset. So he decides to blow off steam because he was so angry, but in the process of doing that he injures himself in the eye playing racquetball and receives an eyepatch. The eyepatch makes others on the bus think he is tough, so a group of guys decide to test his toughness. Following that, he woke up in a roadside ditch. What this video is portraying to us is a weak illustration of slippery slope because they are trying to cover up the fallacy with humor. A list of events were given in this video that are unlikely to happen and they tried to use humor to hide it. They are saying if you don't simply switch to Direct Tv, then bad things will happen to you.

This fallacy changes aspects in our culture by using persuasion amongst a serious of situations (usually negative) taking place continuously one after another, until you finally understand and get the message. This can be weak when trying to conceal with humor, but strong when used in the right way. In order to address the fallacy, pay attention to the actual message. Take a look at what is taking place. Make sure you know whether or not a series of events are given leading up to a final marking point, and whether or not the author is trying to persuade the reader in a way which makes them lean towards the key message. 

Dave Chappelle, The Illogical Comedian

Comedy is a monumental piece of our culture today. One specific comedian, Dave Chappelle, uses stereotyping and racism as material for his humor. Chappelle uses the "logic" of what people are imagining in their minds and mocks it. Most of these humorous skits are logical fallacies, most of which are about stereotyping. One example is this logic fallacy in a skit is the "Korean Store Owner Poem." Dave Chappelle here shows a situation where a black man enters a convenience store owned by a Korean man. The Korean store owner tells the black man to hurry up and buy something, suspecting that he is going to steal. This right here is a logical fallacy, the Korean store owner is stereotyping the black man. The black man replies by shouting that he isn’t stealing anything and calls him a “china-man.” Dave shows another stereotype logical fallacy. The Korean store owner then tells him that not all asians look alike. The black man then apologizes and explains how they kind of do. He then says that some people think all black people look alike as well, we call the people the police. This is not the first, nor last, time Chappelle used a logically fallacy in his comedy. In another skit called, "Blind Supremacy," Dave Chappelle acts as a Ku Klux Klan member. The logically fallacy in this is irony. The Ku Klux Klan member is actually a black man, who is blind and thinks that they he is white. Adding humor and logical fallacies makes Dave Chappelle the reason why he is considered one of the greatest comedians in our culture today.

Appealing Emotions

A logical fallacy that is commonly used is appeal to emotion. Appeal to emotion is when someone manipulates their audience's emotions to validate an argument. A great number of advertisements use this logical fallacy when trying to sell their product or trying to persuade people to "think" like them. For example: the link below shows a commercial that triggers sadness and sorrow. It shows a little boy losing his mother in a huge crowd for a couple of minutes. Then it explains how smoking can turn those couple of minutes into eternity.




Another example of someone using this logical fallacy is Donald Trump. During this presidential campaign, Trump has said some very inappropriate things about several people. Although he has been getting the attention he is seeking, he wants more. In an article written by Ashley Barker, she goes on to explain how Trump addresses a very controversial topic. He says that transgenders should be allowed to use whichever bathroom they please. He appeals to the emotions of people who feel strongly about this topic. Just because you say one good thing, doesn't mean it will out weigh the bad things. He sure did use this logical fallacy to his advantage.

Because our culture is so powerful, that commercial and article can bring out several emotions. So using appeal to emotion can become essential to the alterations in our culture that are to come. It's a very easy fallacy to portray. When trying to back up an argument, capture your readers by activating their emotions. That will result in a strong connection. The stronger connection, the more clarity there will be.

Fallacies in Old Spice Questions Video

Logical fallacies mean “does not follow” in Latin, Non Sequitur saying the statement and the conclusion are not matching what they are saying.  I chose one of the Old Spice Body wash commercials with Isaiah Mustafa – The Man Your Man Could Smell Like.  Mustafa is a former NFL football player and American actor. The target audience for this Old Spice Body Wash commercial are females and males.  I believe the most important point in this commercial are for men who believe they would smell good by using Old Spice Body Wash and charm their ladies at the same time.  This commercial makes me giggle all of the time and have some logical fallacies.   

The first fallacy I saw in the commercial was the bandwagon.  Bandwagon fallacy mean appealing to popularity or the fact that many people do something as an attempted form of validation. The former NFL Football player and American actor is standing on a beach with a white towel wrapped around his waist as he shows off his handsome body, muscles and six-pack in order to sell Old Spice Body Wash.  Since he is a former NFL Football player and American actor this indicates this product must be good and many consumers will purchase this product because of Mustafa is well known.  The commercial starts off: “Hello Ladies.  How are you?  Fantastic!  Does your man look like me?  No.  Can he smell like me?  Yes. Should he use Old Spice Body Wash.?  I don’t know.  The well-known NFL football player and American actor indicates all men should smell like him and if so they could charm their way into female’s heart.

The Second fallacy I saw in the commercial was false cause which is presuming that a real or perceived relationship between this is that one is the cause of the other.  The very attractive NFL Football player and American actor asked Do you like the smell of adventures?  Do you want a man who smell like he can bake you a gourmet cake in the dream kitchen he built you with his own hands?  Of course, swan dive into the best night of your life.  So ladies should your man smell like and Old Spice Man.  You tell me.”  Mustafa is making the assumption that a man who uses Old Spice Body Wash will be able to sweet talk the ladies.  Also, Mustafa indicates if you use Old Spice Body Wash you will be able to bake gourmet cakes and build dream kitchens.

The Last fallacy in the Old Spice commercial would have to be appeal to authority.  Appeal of authority is “also known as an argument from authority (Latin: argumentum ad verecundiam), it is argued that something is true, because someone of authority (like an expert) says it is true. “ The football player Mustafa is selling the old spice and since he is a football player and is in great shape. Men should go buy the old spice so they can be like him and the ladies would go after him. Since Mustafa is saying the product is excellent and women want their men like him. People would go out and buy the product.  Appealing to authority is valid in this case because the authority is actually a legitimate authority on the facts of the argument.

Their significant other and they will be just like him.  This is a false cause fallacy because using Old Spice Body Wash doesn’t mean you can bake, build your dream kitchen or work your way into female’s heart.  The attractive young man believes if you use something other than Old Spice Body Wash you couldn’t win a lady’s heart.

Black and White Fallacy

The Logically Fallacy I chose is Black or White. The definition is: where two alternative states are presented as the only possibilities, when in fact more possibilities exist. It affects our culture by splitting the country up in two. This fallacy is seen in our government as the two main parties. People are either a Democrat or a Republican. In Politics people are pushed to pick on side when voting and have no other party to choose from. 

 Stahcer's Political Cartoon shows the innocent side of our government and also the reality of it all. The "Political Science side shows the openness that our government is supposed to portray while the "Political Reality' portrays the fight between the Democrats (donkey) and the Republicans (elephant). This picture also shows how this could impact the next generations to come. It shows how they are being deceived by being taught that how the government works is easy and simple and does not take much time to fixed if something goes wrong. The black and white fallacy is also used in this cartoon and tells us that politics can be seen as extremely simple or complicated and messy.

We can fix this problem by teaching the younger generation more about politics in our schools and not just showing them Schoolhouse rock. Parents can also teach their children more about our government. Unlike the mother in the picture that just let her daughter admire the view in from of her, parents should inform their children of the hard work that comes with working in politics. Instead of parents pushing their political views on their children they should let them decide what they want to believe in and not make the government seem so black and white. They should be open when it comes to knew ideas and changes in the government and not be so rigid when it comes to voting for a certain party.

Anecdotal Fallacy

The anecdotal fallacy is using personal experience instead of a actual fact and content validate an argument. An example of this would be saying that eating a lot of candy won't give you a cavity because John's cousin eats a pound of candy a week regularly, and his teeth are perfectly fine. This gives the idea that just because John's cousin can do that that you can eat a bunch of candy and you won't get a cavity. But what this fallacy fails to realize that everyone is different and that ones persons experience will not be the same as another's.

Another example would an argument that cigarettes don't kill because James smoked a pack of cigarettes a day his whole life and he lived to be 100 then died of old age. The flaw with this is that although James smoked a pack of cigarettes a day and lived to be a 100 without dying from cigarettes, there are statistics that prove that thousands of people have died due to their addiction to cigarettes. This fallacy is used in daily in all types of persuasion, including peer pressure. People fall victim this fallacy because they hear that someone they know went through something risky and came out with no repercussions, so they believe they can do it too regardless of the many facts against it.

This fallacy can be dangerous because it can be misleading. Everybody is different so you shouldn't get caught up in someone else's experience. Rather than one mans experience you should sticking to what the facts say.

"Cigarettes are gonna be the death of you" 

The Dreaded Traffic of Washington D.C

Courtesy of Google Images

Two of the most common things in Northern Virginia are traffic and bad weather. So if the traffic is bad and the weather bad, that means the weather causes bad traffic. This is an example of a non sequitur. It is a leap in logic. The statement is supposing that the weather is the problem that causes the traffic. As Northern Virginia rains ten days out of every month, one could see where this thought stems. But according to Virginia.gov the congestion originates from a different source. Simply, road use has sharply increased over the past decades. They attribute this increase in vehicle miles traveled (VMT) to growing population and more two-income households owning more cars. They also say that growth in low-density housing in suburbs and “exurbs” is a factor. This growth in VMT simply exceeds the overall road capacity. This causes gridlock over all areas of Northern Virginia and increases the chances of car accidents.     

Courtesy of  Business Insider

“Non Sequitur” translates to “it does not follow”. All invalid arguments are forms of Non sequitur. Many of the commonly known forms have been made in to their own logical fallacies. Non sequitur is very common in arguments. In fact, it even has a legal definition. “A conclusion does not logically follow from the facts or law.” There are 5 main types, affirming the consequent, (If A is true, then B is true. B is true. Therefore, A is true.) denying the antecedent, (If A is true, then B is true. A is false. Therefore, B is false.) affirming a disjunct,  (A is true or B is true. B is true. Therefore, A is not true.) denying a conjunct, (It is not the case that both A is true and B is true. B is not true. Therefore, A is true.) and fallacy of the undistributed middle. (All As are Bs. Y is a B. Therefore, Y is a Z.)

Courtesy of Getty Images

It would only take driving on the freeways to see that the facts are supported. During the rush hours the traffic is often at a standstill. Even at ten in the night the roads are still congested. Drivers must plan on doubling all travel time even when you are an hour away from Washington D.C., 15 miles could take 45 minutes. Even the specialized HOV lanes, that can cost over 20 dollars for 5 miles, are not safe from the traffic that clogs the highways. That is not to say that weather has no effect on traffic. Rain slows everyone down and just a bit of snow can shut down the highways. But in the end, it is the quality and the number of drivers that really matter. Anyone who drives or rides on a highway in Northern Virginia knows this all too well. Come rain or shine the traffic will always be horrendous. 

Courtesy of Google Images