Luke_A_Somers comments on Logical Rudeness - Less Wrong

65 Post author: Eliezer_Yudkowsky 29 January 2010 06:48AM

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Comment author: PhilGoetz 28 April 2010 02:51:53AM *  7 points [-]

IIRC, John Searle uses a subtle form of this in his rebuttal to rebuttals to his Chinese Room argument. He separates the attacks into different cases; then he uses one set of assumptions and definitions to rebut one case; then switches (without pointing it out) to a different set of assumptions and definitions to rebut another case. Neither set of assumptions and definitions is sufficient to rebut both cases.

Comment author: Luke_A_Somers 09 December 2011 06:48:04PM 1 point [-]

This can be valid if the assumptions are brought in by the rebuttals he's defending against, and those rebuttals make contradictory assumptions.