He Really Was Irrational

Yesterday the Wall Street Journal printed a letter from Tim Walz of Woodbury, Minn. Mr. Walz took exception to an earlier letter that suggested religious faith is irrational. "Many people today" Mr. Walz wrote, "are quick to dismiss all religious thought as irrational. Of course there have been a number of irrational claims made by the so-called academic community, such as overpopulation and global cooling leading to world-wide starvation, the grave threat of heterosexual AIDS, and now man-made global warming leading to catastrophe."

This is an excellent example of the tu quoque or "I know you are but what am I?" fallacy. The fallacy consists of defending against an accusation by claiming an opponent is guilty of the same accusation. An opponent's guilt, however, does not make you innocent. Even though some scientists were wrong about imminent global cooling they predicted in the 1970s, it does not follow that the theists are right about God. The Logic Critic gives Mr. Tim Walz…

1 Blade - Not even an argument.