Logic / Unit 8 Logic 394 short lesson, about 20 seconds
False Dichotomy
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The idea
Presenting two options as exhaustive when they aren't, then eliminating one.
In practice
"Either we cut the program or we go bankrupt. We can't go bankrupt, so—" The third, fourth, and fifth options wave from offstage.
Where people slip
Near-miss: some dichotomies are genuinely exhaustive — p or not-p always is (139). The fallacy needs false exhaustiveness, so check before objecting.
Your place on the trail
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