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Here is a comprehensive list of argument fallacies.

I haven’t studied this stuff since I accidentally took an argumentative logic class instead of a boolean logic class back in university and I don’t think people will ever learn what begging the question really means.

On a somewhat related note, I serendipitously came across an interesting new word while browsing some of the other pages on infidels.org: solipsism. After a bit of Googling, I came across this gem of a joke attached to a random slashdot post:

A professor is teaching a philosophy course, and he explains to his class solopism, the theory that reality is a creation in ones mind. After the lecture, several students rush up and introduce themselves to the professor and explain that the theory was really in-tune with how they felt and it’s really opened their minds and they just wanted to tell him in person how the felt about his lecture … to this the professor replies “Thats wonderful, so rarely does one solipsist meet another.”

While I find it interesting that somebody has coined a word for the concept, I find this quote from the Wikipedia entry to be somewhat relevant:

Some philosophers hold the viewpoint that solipsism is entirely empty and without content. Like a ‘faith’ argument, it seems sterile, i.e., allows no further argument, nor can it be falsified. The world remains absolutely the same—- so where could a solipsist go from there?

It has about as much potential as the thought experiment that involves imagining what would be if the universe didn’t exist. I find that the latter usually ends up with a popping sensation in my brain and my eyes watering.

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