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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsInternet rules and laws: the top 10, from Godwin to Poe
An old article from 2009 but still a goodie
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/news/6408927/Internet-rules-and-laws-the-top-10-from-Godwin-to-Poe.html
1. Godwins Law
The most famous of all the internet laws, formed by Mike Godwin in 1990. As originally stated, it said: "As a Usenet discussion grows longer, the probability of a comparison involving Nazis or Hitler approaches 1." It has now been expanded to include all web discussions.
It is closely related to the logical fallacy reductio ad Hitlerum, which says Hitler (or the Nazis) liked X, so X is bad, frequently used to denigrate vegetarians and atheists.
Common Godwin's Law appearances include describing women's rights campaigners as feminazis, comparing the former US President George W Bush to Hitler, or saying Barack Obama's proposed healthcare reforms are the new Holocaust.
*end of excerpt*
More at link above, enjoy !
longship
(40,416 posts)Drale
(7,932 posts)malthaussen
(17,647 posts)I always thought "begs the question" meant to beg off the question -- ie, refuse to address it because one has no suitable retort. Puts me among the ignoramii, I guess.
-- Mal
Hatchling
(2,323 posts)DeMyer's Second Law of Internet Debating states:
Anyone who posts an argument on the internet which is largely quotations, can be very safely ignored and is deemed to have lost the argument before it has begun.
malthaussen
(17,647 posts)He'd fail by that rule.
-- Mal
Confusious
(8,317 posts)The "declaring yourself the winner" one a few weeks ago. I knew there was something wrong with the other person declaring themselves the winner of the debate, but I just couldn't put my finger on it.
( Oh, except for #5, I always get there late and the mess has already been cleaned up )
Leftist Agitator
(2,759 posts)Both Adolf Hitler and George Bush did instigate aggressive wars against innocent nations based on a pack of lies.
In that sense, the comparison is completely valid.