LOGIC & CRITICAL THINKING SKILLS American Government

WHAT IS LOGIC? LOGIC IS A STRUCTURED PROCESS FOR PROVIDING REASONABLE ANSWERS [video]

WHY STUDY LOGIC/CRITICAL THINKING? * TO KNOW TRUTH * TO IDENTIFY YOUR BIASES AND THE BIASES OF OTHERS * TO DISCUSS IMPORTANT QUESTIONS WITH SUBSTANCE * TO LIVE A MORE MEANINGFUL LIFE

STAR WARS & RELIGION [video] [link]

(1) SOURCES OF KNOWLEDGE

3 SOURCES OF KNOWLEDGE * (1) THE FIVE SENSES (TASTE, TOUCH, SIGHT, SMELL, and HEARING) – THESE ARE ALL “PHYSICAL” * (2) METAPHYSICS (THE MIND, THE SOUL, SPIRITUALITY, ETC.) * (3) DIVINE REVELATION (COMMUNICATION FROM GOD DIRECTLY) [optical illusions]

HEBREWS 11:1-3 “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. For by it the elders obtained a good testimony. By faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible.”

THE KEY TERM TO KNOW: EPISTEMOLOGY * DEFINITION: EPISTEMOLOGY IS THE STUDY OF A BELIEF * IN OTHER WORDS: “WHY YOU BELIEVE WHAT YOU BELIEVE” * [video] * CRITICAL TERM TO KNOW: “PRESUPPOSITION” * GOVERNMENT-RELATED EXAMPLE: Why should/shouldn’t abortion be legal?

IS IT OKAY FOR A CHRISTIAN TO HAVE DOUBTS? “A faith without some doubts is like a human body without antibodies in it. People who blithely go through life too busy or indifferent to ask hard questions about why they believe as they do will find themselves defenseless against either the experience of tragedy or the probing questions of a smart skeptic.” – Tim Keller

(2) ARISTOTLE’S LOGIC

ARISTOTLE’S LOGIC * Syllogism A(All cats are animals) B(Ginger Snap is a cat) --(Therefore…) C(Ginger Snap is an animal) SYLLOGISM = A TOOL FOR SYNTHESIS

ARISTOTLE’S LOGIC * Syllogism A(All cats has four legs) B(Dogs have four legs) --(Therefore…) C(Cats are dogs)….WHAT?! ^ THIS IS A “LOGICAL FALLACY” (=an error)

ARISTOTLE’S LOGIC (GOVERNMENT-RELATED) * Every politician’s syllogism: A(Americans need change) B(My policies provide change) --(Therefore…) C(Americans should vote for me!)

ARISTOTLE’S LOGIC (OBAMACARE) * The Obamacare syllogism: A(Most Americans want health insurance) B(Obamacare makes health insurance mandatory) --(Therefore…) C(Most Americans want Obamacare) ^ Winner: Logical Fallacy of the Year Award

(3) LOGICAL FALLACIES

LIST OF LOGICAL FALLACIES * (1) Hasty Generalization * (2) Missing the Point * (3) Post Hoc (= “false cause”) * (4) Slippery Slope * (5) Weak Analogy * (6) Appeal to Authority * (7) Ad populum (= “to the people”) * (8) Ad hominem (= “against the person”) * (9) Appeal to Pity * (10) Appeal to Ignorance * (11) Straw Man * (12) Red Herring * (13) False Dichotomy * (14) Begging the Question * (15) Equivocation

[1] HASTY GENERALIZATION Definition: Making an assumption (usually about a group) with premature evidence Example: “Christians are jerks. When I went to a church, the people there were hypocritical and mean.” Logical Fallacy: Since when are all Christians hypocritical and mean?

[2] POST HOC (“FALSE CAUSE”) Definition: Arguing that an effect is the result of an illogical cause Example: Since I started working at RVCS, the prices of gasoline have dropped. Therefore, because RVCS hired me, the prices have been lowered…you’re welcome ;) Logical Fallacy: No evidence exists to prove that the effect of lower gas was caused by me being hired at RVCS.

[3] SLIPPERY SLOPE Definition: Assuming that an undesirable outcome is inevitable, based on limited evidence

[4] AD HOMINEM (“AGAINST THE PERSON”) Definition: Attacking the character of the opponent, rather than his/her argument [video]

[5] APPEAL TO IGNORANCE Definition: Because issue X has never been disproven, it is therefore true OR Because issue Y has never been proven, it is therefore not true. Example: Big Foot

[6] STRAW MAN ARGUMENT Definition: Rather than arguing against the true position of your opponent, you are criticizing a much weaker version.

[7] BEGGING THE QUESTION Definition: Argument from circular reasoning [video] h?v=0d4FHHf00pY h?v=0d4FHHf00pY

DEMOCRATIC DEBATE 2015 M 58:14 M 1:18:50

3 RD GOP DEBATE 2015 [video] Mutes: 1:20:37 1:30:06 1:33:37 1:45:00 1:48:22