ï»żHey whatâs up Thinkers! Kathy Gibbens hereâŠ
Letâs start off today with a quick review of a fallacy we covered earlier in the podcast: The Ambiguity Fallacy. Do you want to pause for a quick second and see if you can remember what the Ambiguity Fallacy is? The Ambiguity Fallacy happens when someone is unclear about certain terms of the argument, or about a definition used in the argument. It makes things confusing. Oftentimes, this ambiguity sounds really goodâŠit can sound like a very compelling phrase, but that doesnât mean that itâs accurate. Ambiguities can happen on purpose, when someone is purposefully trying to mislead you, downplay part of the argument or overemphasize another part of the argument. And of course, a lot of times, it happens sort of by accident b/c the other person hasnât fully formed a good argument and is making assumptions that the other person knows what youâre talking about.
So the question to ask yourself when youâre facing ambiguity is pretty simple: âWhat do they really mean by that phrase?â
If you want to hear more about this fallacy, check out Episode 41.
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Man, you guys, buckle up b/c todayâs fallacy is a doozy! This fallacy is being shouted from the rooftops these days, from the white house to the schoolhouse to social media and everywhere in between. And Iâm going to tell it like it is, so donât get your knickers in a bunchâŠa fallacy is a fallacy regardless of whoâs saying it! So, deep breath, here we go.
Todayâs fallacy is called The Relativist Fallacy. The Relativist Fallacy happens when someone says there is no objective truth when it comes to certain things. That your subjective âtruthâ is true and my subjective âtruthâ is true, even when they donât agree. Did that sound confusing? Let me say it like this: have you ever heard someone say, âThat may be true for you, but itâs not true for me?â Thatâs the Relativist Fallacy. Now, weâre not talking about things that are personal opinions or preferences here. Itâs not a fallacy to say, âwell, you may like grape bubblegum, but I think itâs gross.â Thatâs an opinion and opinions are always going to be subjective. What this fallacy is in reference to are things that are objective truth, or have always been considered to be objective truth.
Another way this can be committed is when someone claims that whatâs objectively true for other people isnât true for them (yes, thatâs a form of Special Pleading, which we covered in episode 10!).
For instance, I canât say that 2+2=5 is true for me, but it doesnât have to be true for you. I canât say that the earth is flat for me, but it can be round for you. I canât say that smoking may be bad for you but itâs healthy for me.
This fallacy is also sometimes called The Subjectivist Fallacy b/c itâs appealing to subjective truth.
Whatâs wrong with the thinking here is that it violates the formal logic law of noncontradiction, which we havenât talked about yet on this podcast, but I will at some point! Basically it means that two opposite things canât both be true.
When someone says, âX is true for meâ, what theyâre really saying is, âI BELIEVE X is true for me.â Do you see the difference there? Itâs really an opinion and if itâs an opinion it should never be claimed to be an objective truth. Beliefs may be relative to individuals, but TRUTH is not.
Society today has totally hijacked the word âTruthâ. It has been equivocated, which means the definition has been changed. It no longer means something thatâs actually objectively true and thereby we are responsible to that truth; the definition has been changed to âsomething that I think or believe, so therefore you should think or believe it, too.â Friends, thatâs not what truth is.
The biggest, most in-our-face example of the Relativist Fallacy in our society today has to do with gender, with the definition of what is a man or a woman, what it means to be a boy or a girl. Yâall, this wasnât a question to even be asked back when I was growing up, but you are being bombarded with this one constantly and you have to recognize it for what it is. When someone says that there is no definition for a woman or for a man, and that they are changing or choosing what gender they are, thatâs the Relativist Fallacy. Theyâre claiming that something they think or feel is objective truth. Itâs not.
Hereâs a real life example of this. I have a wonderful massage therapist who I see every month and I asked her one time what were some of the funny experiences sheâs had as a massage therapist. She told me that one time, she had a girl in her late teens or early twenties come in for a massage and when she tried to ask her questions or talk to her, this girl would respond by neighing or stomping her feet like a horse. When she asked her what was going on, the girl told her that she identifies as a unicorn. I kid you not. And she expected my massage therapist to go along with her belief that she was a unicorn, which, of course, she did not do. Let me tell you this right now: You do not have to go along with someone who is committing The Relativist Fallacy! Donât do it! Stick to what you know to be objectively true. Just b/c I say that 2+2=5, you donât have to use that to figure your taxesâŠyou would end up totally wrong.
So, the question to ask yourself if youâre facing the Relativist Fallacy is super simple and itâs the one I ask every single week:: âIs that really true?â *repeat*
Hereâs the thing: I believe that there is Truth, and we can know it. In fact, Proverbs 25:2 says, âIt is the glory of God to conceal a matter, and the glory of kings to seek it out.â and John 8:32 says, âThen you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.â You see how it says THE truth? That word âtheâ is an article adjective that limits and defines what is meant by the word truth. Itâs not saying that you can know âAâ truth, which would be one among many truths, itâs saying there is one truth, and you can know it. Alright guys, this is a heavy, deep topic & we could have talked a lot more about it, but hopefully itâs much simpler for you now that you know the name of the fallacy.
Remember: When you learn HOW to think, you will no longer fall prey to those who are trying to tell you what THEY want you to think and it all starts with asking one simple question: âIs that really true?â
