Appeal to Fear Fallacy

This type of fallacy is one that, as noted in its name, plays upon people’s fear. In particular, this fallacy presents a scary future if a certain decision is made today.

Example:

Elizabeth Smith doesn’t understand foreign policy. If you elect Elizabeth Smith as president, we will be attacked by terrorists.

You can see this fallacy in action in Dr. Fallacy’s campaign ad in the comic below.

Appeal to Fear logical fallacy comic with the evil Dr. Fallacy

Image Transcript
Voice on TV: Elizabeth Smith doesn’t understand foreign policy. If you elect her as President, we will be attacked by terrorists. Paid for by the campaign to elect Dr. Fallacy.

[Captain Logic Owl swooshes in.]

Captain Logic Owl: Viewer, don’t let Dr. Fallacy scare you into voting for him! This political ad is an appeal to fear fallacy.

Appeal to Fear logical fallacy comic with the OWL Superhero

Image Transcript
Viewer: I decided to vote for Elizabeth Smith because Dr. Fallacy’s campaign ads were full of logical fallacies.

Dr. Fallacy: Drats! Foiled again by logic, but I’ll be back again in four years!

Thankfully, the voters saw through Dr. Fallacy’s faulty logic. While this kind of claim seems outlandish, similar claims have been made by candidates in elections for years. Obviously, this kind of claim isn’t logical, however. No one can predict the future, but making a bold claim like this with no evidence at all is a clear logical fallacy.

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