/sci/ - Science & Math

>>1744847
The Straw Man fallacy is committed when a person simply ignores a person's actual position and substitutes a distorted, exaggerated or misrepresented version of that position. This sort of "reasoning" has the following pattern:

1. Person A has position X.
2. Person B presents position Y (which is a distorted version of X).
3. Person B attacks position Y.
4. Therefore X is false/incorrect/flawed.

This sort of "reasoning" is fallacious because attacking a distorted version of a position simply does not constitute an attack on the position itself. One might as well expect an attack on a poor drawing of a person to hurt the person

To repeat:

"According to a gallup poll, 40% of the country identifies as conservative."

Your idiotic, poorly written strawman reply:

"OMG, YOU'RE SAYING THE TEA PARTY IS THE MAJORITY LOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOL *image macro*"

http://www.gallup.com/poll/141032/2010-conservatives-outnumber-moderates-liberals.aspx

>>PRINCETON, NJ -- Conservatives have maintained their leading position among U.S. ideological groups in the first half of 2010. Gallup finds 42% of Americans describing themselves as either very conservative or conservative. This is up slightly from the 40% seen for all of 2009 and contrasts with the 20% calling themselves liberal or very liberal.