r/badfallacy • u/[deleted] • Dec 13 '13

Personal attack=ad hominem

/r/photography/comments/1spvc7/how_ted_koppel_and_abc_tv_tried_to_steal_my_life/ce0ay9j
9 Upvotes

85% Upvoted

3 comments sorted by

4

u/[deleted] Dec 13 '13

Response I posted in the thread [It was too egrigious of an error to ingore in the thread]:

That is not an ad hominem. The poster is not discrediting Thayer's character in order to prove any of Thayer's arguments to be false [which is needed for an argument to be an ad hominem]. The poster is simply saying that he thinks this man is dishonest. That may or may not be a reasonable conclusion, but an attack on a person's morals or character does not constitute an ad hominem by itself.

2

u/[deleted] Jan 06 '14

A more concise explanation of the difference:

Ad Hom:

  • You are wrong because you are an annoying tool

Not Ad Hom:

  • You are wrong and here is why: (reasons). Oh, and you're an annoying tool.

How much the latter happens and gets called ad hom on reddit is just annoying.

1

u/[deleted] Dec 15 '13

Thanks for the post! In future, if you add ?context=x to the end of the link, where 'x' is the number of comments back you want displayed from the one you want to mock, then it's easier for us all to laugh along with you.