Question

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Jason Mathias

Can a False Dilemma have if this then that language as well?

Is this meme/ argument a false dilemma fallacy? 

"If masks work, why do business's need to be closed?

If they don't work, why are we forced to wear them?!

I'll give ya a minute"
asked on Friday, Dec 11, 2020 09:56:15 PM by Jason Mathias

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account no longer exists writes:

Come on, Man! Do you really think you have posed an argument here? Brush up on Logic 101.

 

posted on Saturday, Dec 12, 2020 06:08:32 AM
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Joel DiBartolomeo writes:
[To Prof M]

Businesses are closed to protect "at risk" individuals; not everyone is wearing a mask or wearing them properly in public places, which contributes to the spread. Masks minimize the spread. 

The dilemma is not binary: Do masks work or not? Contributing factors, like wearing a mask properly in public, are a reason for the spread. 

 

[ login to reply ] posted on Saturday, Dec 12, 2020 07:00:44 AM
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Jason Mathias writes:
[To Prof M]

Its not my argument, its just a fallacious meme I saw someone post on FB. I was just wondering if false dilemmas can have if this then that language and not just either or language. 

[ login to reply ] posted on Saturday, Dec 12, 2020 05:00:31 PM

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Answers

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Dr. Richard
1

Mo me, the statements have so many places of flawed thinking, it is difficult to pick one or two. Certainly, the false dilemma (fallacy of the false alternative) is something to consider AFTER getting the agreement of participants to the definitions of the operative terms. I note the undercurrent of both is the premise the government should tell private businesses when to close, order their customers not to go to a business, or force an allegedly free population to wear a mask. This is in addition to the whole debate about whether masks "work" in this instance and would require discussion.  

answered on Saturday, Dec 12, 2020 11:19:47 AM by Dr. Richard

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Bo Bennett, PhD
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Yes, a false dilemma can have "if" statements because of what is implied. The meme you referenced implies one of two options: "work" and "don't work." Consider the following:

If masks work, we should encourage people to wear them.

If masks don't work, we shouldn't encourage people to wear them.

This is very different from the meme. In my above example, I have created a dilemma, but not a false one because of the implied definition of "work." "Work," is a threshold term where it is a legitimate binary: works or doesn't work. Admittedly, it is a poor choice of the term but not fallacious. Here "work" is synonymous with "has a positive effect." Also, there are no conditions in which they work, so it is poor communication, but still not a false dilemma. In the meme, "work" is synonymous with "prevents 100% of COVID," and of course, this leaves out the 0-99.99...% options.

These kind of sophomoric memes are best countered with simple analogies showing the flaw in the logic since people who agree and share these memes wouldn't even begin to understand what I wrote above. Condescending? Perhaps, but also unfortunately true. My response would be:

If seat belts work, why do people who wear them die in car crashes?
If they don't work, why are we forced to wear them?

If you are more interested in making the person look stupid than having them agree with you and see their error in reasoning, you can add:

I'll give you more than a minute. I suspect you'll need it.
answered on Saturday, Dec 12, 2020 07:49:48 AM by Bo Bennett, PhD

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account no longer exists writes:

If masks work, we should encourage people to wear them.

If masks don't work, we shouldn't encourage people to wear them.

I am having trouble seeing this as a dilemma, at least as the term is usually employed, to wit:

"A difficult choice between equally undesirable alternatives. In a disadvantageous rhetorical position, one is said to be impaled on the horns of a dilemma..."  Source: Philosophical Dictionary: (philosophypages.com)

I don't see that either encouraging or not encouraging mask-wearing are "undesirable alternatives" when the operative condition is whether the masks are effective (work). In short, where are the horns?

I think a dilemma would be something like: 

Assuming that masks are effective in curbing the spread of Covid, if we mandate mask-wearing we are encroaching on people's right to personal autonomy  (ala Kant),

but, if we don't mandate mask-wearing then Covid will spread.

One horn being encroaching on rights; the other, allowing Covid to spread. Each choice being undesirable.

The only way my example would be a false dilemma is by ignoring the unstated third choice of simply encouraging but not mandating mask-wearing, i.e., no dilemma. (Of course, one could argue, given the prevailing epidemiological evidence, whether this choice would be the best policy. But that's another debate.)

posted on Saturday, Dec 12, 2020 05:47:10 PM
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Bo Bennett, PhD writes:
[To Prof M]

I agree. I often use the terms "dilemma" and "dichotomy" synonymously because of the way the fallacies are used. But we should be more precise. A dilemma is about a difficult choice where a dichotomy is just a choice between two very different things or opposites.

[ login to reply ] posted on Saturday, Dec 12, 2020 05:55:31 PM
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account no longer exists writes:

The question of whether to wear masks or not is the classic Shakeperian retorical question regarding life (to be or not to be) and therefore an Appeal to Authority -- Be it ultimately yours and the houses you bring along with it to fall down alongside yours or rise above with others in tow.

Robert W. Armijo

 

 

 

 

 

posted on Sunday, Dec 13, 2020 11:27:16 PM