Conspiracy Myths (3) - Ad-hominem Attacks

Ad-hominem Attacks (attacking a person)

  


Unfortunately, there are many ways to attack or discredit an opponent.

One is to publicly question their ability to follow the proposed arguments (though they are illogical) and blame them for being uncapable (or unwilling) to do so. This attitude is often sustained by spreading (through social media) negative statements about the opponent, like: not trustworthy, unethical, stubborn fundamentalist, fanatic, lunatic, only cui-bono-driven, biased, not qualified, industry-paid.

This is often times done in a subversive way, e.g., when ‘just’ saying that other people hold this opinion. On the other hand, wrong statements can be uttered blatantly and repeated again and again: Obama was not born on American soil. Or: many world leaders are in reality shape-shifting reptilian aliens taking on human form.

Key is to repeat these statements over and over again (ad nauseam) and in different ways to make them stick to the audience, since a statement becomes truer and more convincing the more often it is repeated (most recent example: we won the election by a landslide, or: this election was rigged).

Another method is called ‘poisoning of the well’.  For example, if an anti-abortionist calls this praxis ‘Holocaust’ and their opponents ‘Nazis’. It is obvious that the right for abortion should not in any meaningful way be compared to the Holocaust, but the naming serves the purpose of discrediting the opponents. Another example: if someone who is in favor of separating state and church is called a ‘secular Taliban’. Arguments may be forgotten, but the name sticks ‘forever’.

So again: just spread upfront (e.g., through social media) some ‘rumors’ or ‘other people’s opinion’ about the opponent, e.g., not trustworthy, unethical, stubborn fundamentalist, fanatic, lunatic, only cui-bono-driven, biased, not qualified, industry-paid.

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