Tu quoque
From RationalWiki
"Tu quoque" ("You too!") is a form of ad hominem fallacy that occurs when it is assumed that an argument is wrong if the source making the claim has itself spoken or acted in a way inconsistent with it.
[edit] Structure
The usual structure of the fallacy is:
- A makes criticism P.
- A is also guilty of P.
- Therefore, P is dismissed.
This kind of reasoning is fallacious because criticism or objection to the person making the claim does not apply equally, if at all, to the argument itself. In essence, the criticism of P is being dismissed on grounds of a criticism of A, which is a non sequitur.
However; if the premises are true then source A is most likely a hypocrite.
[edit] Example
A conversation between rival politicians;
Politician 1: Is it true that you were at a brothel last night?
Politician 2: You should know, you were there!
The fact that Politician 1 was present at the brothel in no way absolves any of the moral blame for Politician 2 (unless P1 dragged P2 there against P2's will). If P2 is lying, he is making a pathetic attempt to switch blame. If P2 is telling the truth, P1 is being a massive hypocrite -- but he's a politician, so no surprises there.
[edit] See also
| Articles about logical fallacies | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Formal fallacies | |||||
| Affirming the consequent | Denying the antecedent | ||||
| Informal fallacies | |||||
| Red herrings | |||||
| Conditional fallacies | |||||
| Fallacious argument styles | |||||