ï»żHey whatâs up Thinkers! Kathy Gibbens hereâŠ
Ok, letâs start off with a quick review of a fallacy we covered earlier in the podcast: the Burden of Proof Fallacy. The Burden of Proof Fallacy claims that something is true or something exists unless the other person can prove that it isnât true or doesnât exist. Or they claim that something is false or doesnât exist unless the other person can prove that itâs true or that it does exist. Basically, theyâre shifting the burden of coming up with the proof of what theyâre saying onto the other person, when really, if theyâre the one making the claim, they should be the ones coming up with the proof for their claim themselves!
Question to ask yourself: âDoes this person have any real evidence for what theyâre saying or are they trying to trick me into an argument?â
If you want to review or hear more about the Burden of Proof Fallacy, go back & check out Episode 43.
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Todayâs new fallacy has a kind of funny name: Whataboutism. Yep, whataboutism. As in someone saying, âWell, what about thisâŠâ or âWhat about thatâŠ?â Whataboutism is often used as an argumentative tactic where someone uses a âWhat aboutâ question to deflect from the issue at hand or to avoid answering a question.
You may have even done this yourself! If your parents ask you why your bedroom isnât clean and you reply, âWell whatabout my sisterâs room? Itâs a mess and youâre not yelling at her about it!â Thatâs Whataboutism. You didnât actually answer the question about the mess in YOUR bedroom, you deflected by asking âwhataboutâ your sisterâs room.
Politicians do this often, and in fact, a journalist said that âWhataboutismâ was former president Donald Trumpâs âfavorite dodgeâ b/c when he was accused of something, he would often reply that someone else was worse.
The problem with âWhataboutismâ is that itâs avoidance. Itâs basically ignoring the question or the accusation and instead of answering it, itâs trying to divert the attention to someone else or to another issue. If someone tries to âwhataboutâ you, donât take the bait! Get back to the issue at hand and insist that the real issue be addressed or the real question be answered. Donât take the fake! Usually the reason people give a âwhataboutâ response is that they either donât want to answer the question or they donât know the answer, or theyâre trying to get the unwanted attention off themselves by making someone else look worse. Really, all it does is make both themselves and the other person look ridiculous.
Another example of this fallacy is in sports. Say a soccer coach is getting after his offensive team b/c theyâre not playing well together, resulting in a losing season. The players reply by saying, âWell, whatabout the goalie? Heâs the one that let in all the shots!â Do you see how the offensive players used that argument to deflect the blame off themselves onto the goalie? They took zero responsibility for their part in the losses.
Question to ask yourself if youâre facing the âWhataboutismâ Fallacy is a really difficult one, you ready?: âDid you just try to dodge my question?â⊠*repeat*
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
