Logical Fallacy of Ambiguity
Ambiguity is one of the many smokescreens that are used to cover the fact that the reasoning is based on one of the three fallacies of Agrippa's trilemma. Whenever a logical fallacy is committed, the fallacy has its roots in Agrippa's trilemma. All human thought (without Divine revelation) is based on one of three unhappy possibilities. These three possibilities are infinite regress, circular reasoning, or axiomatic thinking. This problem is known as Agrippa's trilemma. Some have claimed that only logic and math can be known without Divine revelation; however, that is not true. There is no reason to trust either logic or math without Divine revelation. Science is also limited to the pragmatic because of the weakness on human reasoning, which is known as Agrippa's trilemma.
The logical fallacy of ambiguity occurs when the conclusion is not proved due to vagueness in words, phrases, or grammar.
Examples of the Logical Fallacy of Ambiguity
Bill Nye arguing against Creaton science: "So, your view that we’re supposed to take your word for it—this Book, written centuries ago, translated into American English is somehow more important that what I can see with my own eyes, is an extraordinary claim."
Bill's argument is that he can see something (we don't know what, so this is ambiguous.) with his own eyes that refutes the history that God is giving us through Scripture. At no time, during the debate from which this quote came, did Bill Nye give any credible evidence that in any way could back up his claim.
Bill Nye arguing against Creaton science: "This is to say, when people make assumptions based on radiometric dating, when they make assumptions about the expanding Universe, when they make assumptions about the rate at which genes change in populations of bacterial in laboratory growth media, they’re making assumptions based on previous experience."
Bill Nye is using the logical fallacy of ambiguity among other fallacies. What is this "previous experience." He doesn't say. That is because assumptions are arbitrary. They may be held within certain parameters, but the assumptions themselves are arbitrary. They are usually pulled from worldviews, that is, paradigms. That's why they are often stated as if they were part of reality. A worldviews is a fake-reality that seems more real than real reality.
He is also using the logical fallacy of false cause and effect by saying that assumptions come from previous experience. If there is a previous experience, that is empirical. Empirical observation, that is experience of reality, is not assumption, nor can it generate assumptions. Assumptions come from the imagination, from the worldview/paradigm/fake-reality that is built in the human mind. They may be rationalized, but they cannot be proved. They are always arbitrary. On the other hand, Divine revelation has a source other than the human mind. It is not arbitrary. However, the human mind is very skilled at adding assumptions to Divine revelation or using assumptions to take some parts out of Divine revelation, and this is extremely deceptive. We see this at work in many of the interpretations of what can be plainly read in Scripture or plainly seen in creation around us.
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Last updated: Sep, 2014
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Logical Fallacy of Ambiguity
Logical Fallacy of the Barnum Effect / P. T. Barnum Effect / The Fallacy of Personal Validation / The Forer Effect
Logical Fallacy of Ambiguous Assertion
Logical Fallacy of Innuendo
Sly Suggestion Fallacy
Syntactic Ambiguity Fallacy / Structural Ambiguity / Grammatical Ambiguity / Amphiboly / Semantic Ambiguity / Semantical Ambiguity Fallacy
The Logical Fallacy Lexical Ambiguity
Homonymy
Shingle Speech
Use-Mention Error / UME
Double Entendre
Logical Fallacy of Misuse of Etymology
Logical Fallacy of Garden Path Ambiguity
Squinting Modifier Fallacy
Quantifier Fallacy / Quantifier Shift Fallacy
Illicit Observation Fallacy
Metaphorical Ambiguity Fallacy
Euphemism
Logical Fallacy of Equivocation / Bait and Switch / Amphiboly / Semantic Ambiguity / Type-Token Ambiguity / Vagueness
Redefinition Fallacy
Middle Puzzle Part Fallacy
Idiosyncratic Language Fallacy
Type-Token Ambiguity Fallacy
Fallacy of Modal Logic / Modal Scope Fallacy / Misconditionalization
Modal Fallacy / Modal Scope Fallacy
Scope Fallacy
Ambiguous Middle / Ambiguous Middle Term
Logical Fallacy of Hypnotic Bait and Switch
Definist Fallacy
Logical Fallacy of Defining a Word in Terms of Itself
Socratic Fallacy
Logical Fallacy of Defining Terms Too Broadly
Logical Fallacy of Defining Terms Too Narrowly
Logical Fallacy of Failure to Elucidate
Logical Fallacy of Persuasive Definition / Appeal to Definition / Appeal to the Dictionary / Definist Fallacy (type of) / Rhetorical Definition
Logical Fallacy of Composition / Exception Fallacy
Logical Fallacy of Division / False Division / Ecological Fallacy / Ecological Inference Fallacy
Etymological Fallacy
Logical Fallacy of Nominalization, Misnomer, Labeling
Logical Fallacy of Inference from a Label
Pigeonholing Fallacy / Ahistoric Fallacy
Category Mistake / Category Error
Logical Fallacy of the Conjunction Effect / Conjunction Fallacy
Disjunction Fallacy
Logical Fallacy of Argument by Fast Talking / Information Overload / Bang-Bang-Bang
Logical Fallacy of Proof by Verbosity / Argumentum Verbosium
Logical Fallacy of Argument by Gibberish / Bafflement / Prestigious Jargon
Logical Fallacy of Confusing Contradiction with Contrariety
Logical Fallacy of Ambiguous Collective / Type-Token Ambiguity
Conceptual Fallacy
Anti-Concreteness Mentality Fallacy / Attributing Abstractness to the Concrete / Mistaking an Entity for a Theory / Mistaking Reality for an Assumptions
Butterfly Logic
The Logical Fallacy of Process-Product Ambiguity / Act-Object Ambiguity
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