Appeal to Authority
Latin Name
Description
Where an assertion is deemed true because of the position or authority of the person asserting it.
Example
Bob Smith has been president of this association for five years and if he says no pets allowed then we should follow his wisdom.
Famous Examples
-
I am the commander in chief of the United States armed forces, and Iraq is gonna have to ultimately provide for its own security.
-
I am a channel for the Christ spirit. The title was given to me very recently by the Godhead.
-
You gotta know that deer antler is an androgenic force. And why? Because it’s cosmic in nature. It’s elevating. It’s levitational in nature. Which actually makes you younger. The forces of levity make you younger. Rudolf Steiner said that we gradually age due to substances in our body that are seized by the earth’s gravity. He could have said anything. He could have said anything at all, but he said that. That’s amazing.
-
I read this in Nietzche years ago. Twenty years ago I read this idea. You take whatever is put out there and you exactly reverse it, and there you will have the truth.
-
According to this law [the law of Dharma], you have a unique talent and a unique way of expressing it. There is something that you can do better than anyone else in the whole world--and for every unique talent and unique expression of that talent, there are also unique needs. When these needs are matched with the creative expression of your talent, that is the spark that creates affluence. Expressing your talents to fulfill needs creates unlimited wealth and abundance.
-
Consciousness, rather than being an epiphenomenon of matter, is actually the source of matter. It differentiates into space, time, energy, information, and matter. Even though this view is an ancient view, an ancient world view, it is now finding some resonance amongst a few scientists.
-
When you open your heart to patriotism, there is no room for prejudice. The Bible tells us, "How good and pleasant it is when God's people live together in unity."
-
Somebody made the statement that Donald Trump has built or owns the greatest collection of golf courses, ever, in the history of golf. And I believe that is 100 percent true.
-
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.
-
I am such a strong admirer and supporter of George W. Bush that if he suggested eliminating the income tax or doubling it, I would vote yes on first blush.
-
According to Vani Hari, more commonly known as the "Food Babe" who helped bring Subway's bread ingredients into the spotlight in 2014 for their use of a substance that's also used in yoga mats, dimethylpolysiloxane should be avoided.
-
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.
-
More doctors smoke Camels than any other cigarette!
-
Jerry: Traditionally science fairs are a father-son thing.
Rick: Well scientifically traditions are an idiot thing.
Context: Rick and Morty season 1, episode 9 - Something Ricked This Way Comes -
I know what this is. They've been able to sustain world peace because they have one night a year where they all run around robbing and murdering each other without consequence. (...) If you don't want to watch, don't watch but you know it's my car. Also if you tell your mom about this, I'll purge you.
Context: Rick and Morty season 2, episode 9 - Look Who's Purging Now -
If our Founding Fathers wanted us to care about the rest of the world, they wouldn't have declared their independence from it.
Context: The Colbert Report (television show) -
Richard [Carrier] takes the extremist position that Jesus of Nazareth never even existed, that there was no such person in history. This is a position that is so extreme that to call it marginal would be an understatement; it doesn't even appear on the map of contemporary New Testament scholarship.
Download Image Files
All Sophistry fallacy cards are shared under a Creative Commons 0 license. You are free to copy, use, modify, distribute or sell them in any way you wish. You are not required to credit us but we appreciate it.