Gotcha argument

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Not to be confused with Escape hatch.

A Gotcha argument is a claim that another's argumentation is invalid because it backs an idiot into a corner that cannot be fought out of, usually through use of facts, logic and/or scientific knowledge to crush one's superstitions.

Sarah Palin accuses reporters of this[1] — by name of "gotcha journalism" — as a way to "cover" her inability to answer simple questions and to make the "liberal media" seem like the bad guys.

To avoid such allegations when arguing with neoconservatives, one must avoid any and all use of facts, reason or anything deemed to be "elitist" (e.g., shoes, proper grammar, half a brain, a higher education that didn't take 6 years to complete, ability to answer simple questions, ability to talk, knowledge that the earth isn't flat and is also far older than 6,000 years old, basic understanding of anything outside the US, owning a foreign car).

[edit] Footnotes

  1. http://www.observer.com/2008/media/interview-couric-palin-and-mccain-complain-gotcha-journalism
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