Field guide
The moves of bad-faith argument.
Twenty-six tactics, how to spot each one and how to answer it without stooping to it. Every one of them shows up in the gym.
Distortion
Bending what you said, or what the evidence says.
- StrawmanSwaps your position for a weaker one, then knocks that down.
- Motte and baileyAdvances a bold claim, retreats to a modest one when pressed, then returns to the bold one.
- Cherry pickingShows only the evidence that helps and hides the rest.
- False equivalenceTreats two very different things as if they were the same.
- EquivocationQuietly shifts the meaning of a key word halfway through.
Evasion
Getting out of answering.
- Red herringDrags in a different topic to pull the debate off course.
- WhataboutismAnswers a criticism by pointing at someone else's faults.
- Moving the goalpostsRaises the bar the moment you clear it.
- Shifting the burden of proofMakes a claim, then demands that you disprove it.
- Non-answerAnswers a different question — or none at all — with confidence.
Pressure
Forcing a reaction before you can think.
- Gish gallopFloods the exchange with many weak points faster than anyone can answer them.
- Loaded questionAsks a question that smuggles in an unproven assumption.
- False dilemmaOffers two options as if no others existed.
- Appeal to emotionUses fear, pity or outrage in place of reasons.
- BandwagonArgues that something is true or right because many people believe it.
- Misused authorityLeans on a name instead of reasons — often outside that person's expertise.
- Slippery slopeClaims one small step will inevitably lead to an extreme outcome.
- False urgencyManufactures a deadline so you decide before you think.
Attack
Going after the person instead of the point.
- Ad hominemAttacks the person making the argument instead of the argument.
- Poisoning the wellDiscredits you before you've made your case, so nothing you say will land.
- Tu quoque (“you too”)Dismisses a criticism because the critic doesn't live up to it either.
- Tone policingDismisses an argument because of how it was said rather than what was said.
Logic
Reasoning that only looks valid.