Argument from Popularity
Latin Name
Other Names
Description
Where a proposition is claimed to be true or good solely because many people believe it to be so.
Example
Everyone knows that it's bad luck to send text messages in threes.
Famous Examples
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I believe in American exceptionalism, just as I suspect that the Brits believe in British exceptionalism and the Greeks believe in Greek exceptionalism.
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I feel genius in great works of art. I have seen medical cures that science can’t explain, some seemingly triggered by faith. The same is true of millions of other people.
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In every conversation I’ve had – with housewives in Mumbai, with middle-class people, upper-class, in the slums – everyone says there is an underlying consciousness of karma. That people believe in karma – that what you’re putting out is going to come back. If I do something to you, the energy of it is going to come back to me in the future.
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Everybody loves fights, ... The fans love it.
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Any negative polls are fake news, just like the CNN, ABC, NBC polls in the election. Sorry, people want border security and extreme vetting.
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Throughout history, people have proclaimed that all living beings, especially humans, emit an aura. You see visible proof of this belief in art. Several paintings and sculptures that depict divinity always have a halo around the head of the subject. This is a visible depiction of the aura that the most knowledgeable people and the brightest minds in history believe existed.
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If he wants to be an asshole, it's a free country. Millions before him have made the same life choice.Context: Oryx and Crake
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Homeopathic medicine is more widely practiced and accepted in Europe than in the United States. Half of all Dutch doctors consider homeopathic medicines to be effective, while approximately 30 percent of French doctors and 20 percent of German doctors use homeopathic medicines regularly.
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Morty: Dad Pluto isn't a planet. It's shrinking because of corporations.
Jerry: Yeah that's what that anti-planet nutjob Scroopy Noopers was screaming about outside the Ministry of Money's fundraiser. Are you telling me four billion Plutonians are wrong?
Context: Rick and Morty season 1, episode 9 - Something Ricked This Way Comes -
GMOs are found in more than 70 percent of processed foods. More than sixty-four countries around the world require GMOs to be labeled or regulated. The United States does not.
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Unless the milk you're drinking is clearly marked "organic" or "rBGH free", it probably contains this hormone. Incidentally, Posilac is banned in Europe, Canada, Australia, and Japan. This should tell us something.
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Processed food in America contains chemicals that are banned in Europe.
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