Argumentum ad nauseam

Cogito ergo sum Logic and rhetoric

Key articles

Logical fallacy Syllogism Argument

General logic

Fallacy of accent Quidquid latine dictum sit, altum videtur Poe's Law If-by-whiskey Logic کلمات قلمبه سلمبه

Bad logic

Gish Gallop One-way hash argument Appeal to faith Fallacy Files Post-designation Appeal to bias v - t - e

“”There is no proof or evidence that atheism is accurate and correct. There is no proof or evidence that atheism is accurate and correct. There is no proof or evidence that atheism is accurate and correct. There is no proof or evidence that atheism is accurate and correct. There is no proof or evidence that atheism is accurate and correct.

—Shockofgod

An argumentum ad nauseam (also known as an argument by repetition) is the logical fallacy that something becomes true if it is repeated often enough. An ad nauseam argument that can be easily shown to be false leads to the "point refuted a thousand times".

Due to the modern 24 hour cable news cycle and the fact that every idiot now has a blog, argumentum ad nauseam has become particularly prevalent. In politics it is usually used in the form of a talking point, which is then reduced to a three second sound bite and is repeated at every available opportunity. On the blogosphere it takes the form of a meme, where every like-minded blogger repeats a statement used by a fellow blogger. Twitter, where every message has to be less than 280 (and until recently just 140) characters, has only made this latter form of viral propaganda worse.

Repeating an opinion again and again seems to convince people that it is true — maybe because it simulates the effect of many people having that opinion.

Examples

• 9/11 was an inside job.
• The Jews are to blame for Germany's problems!
• Anti-racist is a codeword for anti-white.
• Carthago delenda est
• CNN is fake news.
• Evolution is just a theory.
• The "Founding Fathers" intended for the USA to be a Christian nation.
• Actually, it's about ethics in game journalism.
• "HeadOn, apply directly to forehead! HeadOn, apply directly to forehead! HeadOn, apply directly to forehead! HeadOn, apply directly to forehead! HeadOn, apply directly to forehead!"
• The Earth hasn't warmed since 1998.
• "I would build a great wall, and nobody builds walls better than me, believe me" And it'll be yuge!
• Jobs and growth
• "Hope, reward, opportunity"
• "Mexico will pay for that wall."
• The New World Order is nearly upon us!
• No blood for oil.
• "No Carbon tax" / "Axe the tax"
• No passenger railway in the world makes a profit
• Obamacare will install death panels and kill your grandmother.
• The creation-evolution debate is a debate about worldviews.
• "Stop the boats"
• Ron Paul 2008 2012 2016 2020.
• The science of global warming is still unclear.
• There is no pay gap!
• There are no transitional fossils.
• There are only two genders.
• Wake up!
• Life begins at conception.
• "Yes we can." (among other political slogans)
• "Make America Great Again".
• ”God is good”
• Taxation is theft

Parodies

“” "Just the place for a Snark!" the Bellman cried, As he landed his crew with care; Supporting each man on the top of the tide By a finger entwined in his hair. "Just the place for a Snark! I have said it twice: That alone should encourage the crew. Just the place for a Snark! I have said it thrice: What I tell you three times is true."

—Lewis Carroll, The Hunting Of The Snark

See also

• PRATT
• Big lie
• Philip J. Rayment
• Fun:Creationist argument Bingo
• Gish Gallop
• Infinite regress
• Circular reasoning

Want to read this in another language?

Si vous voulez cet article en français, il peut être trouvé à Argumentum ad nauseam (français).

Русскоязычным вариантом данной статьи является статья Аргумент к тошноте

External links

• See the Wikipedia article on Argumentum ad nauseam.
• Flaws in Reasoning and Arguments: Repetition