Logic and Current Events Peer 2
In the course of your responses, you might comment on the following types of questions: Have you noticed other examples of the fallacy that your classmate presents? Why do you suppose that people are prone to make errors of this type? What else might people keep in mind to learn to reason better in such cases?
PEERS RESPONSE:
I have committed the fallacy of false cause on more than one occasion. When I was 6, my cousin and I spent the night at our grandparent’s house and stayed up all night watching country music videos. The next day we both came down with a terrible case of the flu, and for years I was not too fond of country music because I thought it made me sick, and I never wanted to feel like that again.
I stayed up all night.
I watched country music videos.
I caught the flu.
Therefore, I caught the flu because I stayed up all night watching country music videos.
I often commit the fallacy of false cause when I am unfamiliar with how something works, which is why critical thinking and education are so important. If something happens following an event and I do not know why I seek out the answers. That way, I know the cause and what to avoid if it was a negative result or what to repeat if it was positive. It is beneficial because it helps me avoid making the same mistake twice. If I get stung by a bee every time I go outside and I think it is because I am wearing perfume when in reality there is a hornet’s nest above the door, not wearing perfume will not do me any good.
