whonew wrote:
jraeyre wrote: Earlier yesterday, as National Journal reports, Obama "let his frustration over the stalled debt talks seep into an address on Latino issues, confessing that he'd like to 'bypass Congress and change the laws on my own' ":
He told the National Council of La Raza, "Believe me, the idea of doing things on my own is very tempting. I promise you."



James Taranto has never been right about any major issue, that I can recall. He was, of course, one of the chief cheerleaders for invading Iraq. I wonder what he said about the effects of the Bush tax cuts when they were being debated? The man is a JOKE and that his drivel is still printed is astounding.

I'm sure that he's also being terribly misleading - if not lying - in the above statement. Surely he must know that the president is responding to voices - growing ever louder at the time of this speech - encouraging him to use executive power to raise the debt limit.

I'm not going to bother looking into it because Taranto has already proven the stock from which he comes many times over.

It's pathetic that anyone would consider putting any weight behind something written by someone who has been wrong about so much.
Thank you for the textbook example of Argumentum ad Hominem

Argumentum ad Hominem (abusive and circumstantial): the fallacy of attacking the character or circumstances of an individual who is advancing a statement or an argument instead of trying to disprove the truth of the statement or the soundness of the argument. Often the argument is characterized simply as a personal attack.

  1. The personal attack is also often termed an "ad personemargument": the statement or argument at issue is dropped from consideration or is ignored, and the locutor's character or circumstances are used to influence opinion.

  2. The fallacy draws its appeal from the technique of "getting personal." The assumption is that what the locutor is saying is entirely or partially dictated by his character or special circumstances and so should be disregarded.


The only reason some people get lost in thought is because it's unfamiliar territory. - Paul Fix