Very good post. A common problem with ad hominem-arguments is that people often don’t give any detailed reasons for believing that their opponent is biased, or for the connection between them being biased and them being wrong. Instead, they just vaguely point to a possible non-rational reason for why their opponents might be biased and wrong. (Cf “just-so-stories” in evolutionary psychology.) Here we get a much more detailed analysis of why this convergence is suspicious.
Very good post. A common problem with ad hominem-arguments is that people often don’t give any detailed reasons for believing that their opponent is biased, or for the connection between them being biased and them being wrong. Instead, they just vaguely point to a possible non-rational reason for why their opponents might be biased and wrong. (Cf “just-so-stories” in evolutionary psychology.) Here we get a much more detailed analysis of why this convergence is suspicious.