Letter to an obnoxious man

[CrAz3D]

FWIW, using the fact that more people support your point of view than do his to try and make your argument is a logical fallacy. The majority opinion is not a logical fact.

However, whether it is a useful point to make depends on the nature of the argument.  His position is that the community would be better off without the crosses on the flag.  It is the majority opinion of the people living in the given community that it doesn't matter.  Of course, one needs to find a way to
communicate this without sounding condescending.


re: Crazed
That is irrelevant.  If the majority of people in a given group are colour blind
and say "red = green," does that make it so?

We're not deciding whether something is red vs. green (or blue HAHA, I hope someone gets that)...we're talkin about an emblem.  Most people want the emblem, the minority of people don't want the emblem...in Congress when most people want something they generally get it.

[Rule]

FWIW, using the fact that more people support your point of view than do his to try and make your argument is a logical fallacy. The majority opinion is not a logical fact.

However, whether it is a useful point to make depends on the nature of the argument.  His position is that the community would be better off without the crosses on the flag.  It is the majority opinion of the people living in the given community that it doesn't matter.  Of course, one needs to find a way to
communicate this without sounding condescending.


re: Crazed
That is irrelevant.  If the majority of people in a given group are colour blind
and say "red = green," does that make it so?

We're not deciding whether something is red vs. green (or blue HAHA, I hope someone gets that)...we're talkin about an emblem.  Most people want the emblem, the minority of people don't want the emblem...in Congress when most people want something they generally get it.

Regardless of "what usually happens in congress," your point that "majority rules" will not be well taken, especially by any sort of intellectual.   If you want to convince me that something of a factual nature is either true or untrue, you will have to do more than claim that most people believe it is (untrue).  The burden on you is to prove me wrong, using logic.  However, I did note
how a "majority rules" argument could be effectively used in a particular situation -- if the dispute in question revolves around majority opinion.

[CrAz3D]

I'm way confused, I'm not proving any facts, just saying that most people in Las Cruces want the emblem to stay as-is.

[Zakath]

That's fine, as far as it goes. I'm just warning you against trying to make that argument more than it is.

Saying "Most people want the emblem kept the way it is" would be fine. Saying "Most people want the emblem kept the way it is, so you're wrong and you should shut up and go away" would not be.