Logical Fallacies - Addressing actual issue

 

Here is an explanation of two common logical fallacies: the Straw Man fallacy and the Ad Hominem fallacy. Both occur during arguments when someone attacks an opponent's position unfairly instead of addressing the actual issue.

1. Straw Man Fallacy

What it is

A straw man fallacy happens when someone distorts, exaggerates, or oversimplifies an opponent's argument to make it much easier to attack. Instead of dealing with the actual point being made, the arguer defeats a fake, "straw-man" version of the argument and claims victory.

Example

• Person A: "We should put more money into funding public transit systems to reduce traffic congestion and carbon emissions."
  
  
• Person B (Straw Man): "So you want to completely ban all cars and force everyone to ride bicycles in the freezing rain? That's ridiculous."
  
  
• Why it's a fallacy: Person A never said cars should be banned or that everyone must bike. Person B exaggerated the argument to make it absurd and easy to knock down.
  
  

2. Ad Hominem Fallacy

What it is

Ad hominem is Latin for "against the man." This fallacy occurs when someone attacks the character, motive, or personal traits of the person making an argument, rather than addressing the substance of the argument itself.

Example

• Person A: "This new corporate tax policy will disproportionately harm small businesses."
  
  
• Person B: "You only say that because you own a small business and don't want to pay your fair share of taxes."
  
  
• Why it's a fallacy: Person B attacks Person A’s self-interest instead of proving whether the tax policy actually harms small businesses or not. The truth of the argument is independent of who is saying it.
  
  

Summary Comparison

Fallacy	Core Strategy	What to Look For
Straw Man	Distorting the argument	Exaggerating or misrepresenting what the other person said.
Ad Hominem	Attacking the person	Insults, questioning motives, or pointing out hypocrisy instead of facts.

Would you like to see how to effectively respond or counter either of these fallacies in a discussion?

 

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Here is how you can effectively respond to and counter both fallacies, using the exact examples from earlier.

1. How to Counter the Straw Man Fallacy

The Original Setup

• Person A: "We should put more money into funding public transit systems to reduce traffic congestion and carbon emissions."
  
  
• Person B (Straw Man): "So you want to completely ban all cars and force everyone to ride bicycles in the freezing rain? That's ridiculous."
  
  

How to Respond

When someone builds a straw man, your goal is to call out the distortion immediately, clarify your actual position, and steer the conversation back to reality.

• Step 1: Point out the exaggeration. ("That is not what I said.")
  
  
• Step 2: Restate your real argument. ("I am proposing better transit options, not banning cars.")
  
  
• Step 3: Re-engage with the core topic.
  
  

Example Response:

"That’s a misrepresentation of my point. I never said anything about banning cars or forcing people to bike. I am simply suggesting we improve public transit so people have a choice. Now, do you think funding transit would help reduce traffic congestion?"

2. How to Counter the Ad Hominem Fallacy

The Original Setup

• Person A: "This new corporate tax policy will disproportionately harm small businesses."
  
  
• Person B (Ad Hominem): "You only say that because you own a small business and don't want to pay your fair share of taxes."
  
  

How to Respond

When someone attacks you personally, your goal is to refuse to take the bait, pivot away from your motives, and force them to address the actual facts or data.

• Step 1: Acknowledge (or brush past) the personal attack. (You don't need to get defensive about who you are.)
  
  
• Step 2: Separate the person from the argument. (Remind them that facts are true or false regardless of who says them.)
  
  
• Step 3: Demand evidence.
  
  

Example Response:

"My personal background doesn't change the facts. Whether I own a business or not, the data on how this tax impacts small businesses still stands. Do you have any evidence showing that this policy won't hurt small businesses?"

Key Takeaway

Defending against these fallacies is all about boundary-setting. Don't let your opponent change the subject to a fake argument (Straw Man) or a fake version of you (Ad Hominem)—gently force them back to the evidence.

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Losing Power :)

 

The Power of Losing  :)

Watching a child learn chess shows us exactly how we grow. A ten year old often moves a piece straight into danger. They lose the piece, and then they lose the game.

At first, this is frustrating. But soon, the child stops complaining and starts looking at the board. They want to know what went wrong. That is the moment real learning begins.

This is true for any skill you want to master. You cannot grow unless you are ready to fail. 

In fact, you should actively practice losing. When you practice losing early on, you take the fear out of making mistakes. You start looking for the lesson in every defeat.

Winning only shows what you already know how to do. Losing is what teaches you something new. A mistake shows you exactly where your plan broke down and gives you the data you need to improve.

Also you do not have to make every mistake yourself, though. You cannot possibly try every wrong move on your own. This is why you should also watch others lose.
When you observe someone else fail, look for the lesson in their defeat. It allows you to learn without paying the price yourself.

 

To learn anything deeply, you must accept setbacks as the cost of getting better. When you fail, do not walk away. Look at what happened, find the lesson, and set up the board for another game.

 

tload : Low-overhead system load monitoring in Linux

 tload : Low-overhead system load monitoring in Linux

filesystem repair in linux for fat32 filesystem

 

Filesystem repair in linux for fat32 filesystem:

Yes such old USB drives still lives around :) 

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Open your terminal and list all connected storage blocks to find your FAT32 device name (e.g., /dev/sdb1 or /dev/sdc2). 

 lsblk -o NAME,FSTYPE,SIZE,MOUNTPOINTS

 

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sudo umount /dev/sdb1

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 This scans the filesystem and prompts you for confirmation before fixing any detected errors:

sudo fsck.fat -r -v /dev/sda1

 

-r: Wisely prompts you for a repair method if inconsistencies are found.

-v: Enables verbose mode so you see what the utility is actively doing. 

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If you want Linux to automatically fix all errors without asking for manual confirmation, run:

sudo fsck.fat -a /dev/sdb1

 

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If you only want to inspect the drive for issues without writing changes or altering any data:

sudo fsck.fat -n /dev/sdb1

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The Truths Around Us - Value of Pi and many more to come

The Truths Around Us:

I recently became fascinated by how people figured out the value of π (pi).

It made me think about something bigger.

Many truths already exist in the world. They are not hidden. They are right in front of us. Everyone can see them, but not everyone notices them. Most of us accept things as they are and move on. A few people become curious. They keep asking "Why?" They keep looking until they find the answer.

Once they discover the truth, it does not belong only to them anymore. It becomes useful for everyone. It helps people live better lives and pushes humanity forward.

History is full of such examples.

Objects have always fallen to the ground. People saw it every day. But it took someone to ask why. That curiosity helped us understand gravity.

Tiny germs had always been around us. People could not see them and did not know they caused many diseases. Once scientists discovered them, simple habits like washing hands and keeping things clean saved millions of lives.

The code of life, DNA, has existed inside every living thing for billions of years. It was always there. We just did not know how to read it. Today, that discovery helps doctors treat diseases and understand life in ways that were impossible before.

These discoveries remind us of something important. Truth does not change because we do not understand it. It patiently waits until someone discovers it.

It also makes me wonder how many more truths are still waiting for us.

There are many things we still do not fully understand. We still do not know exactly how consciousness works or why we are aware of ourselves. We still do not fully understand time. We know that most of the universe is made of something we cannot even see, called dark matter and dark energy, but we still do not know what they really are.

Even here on Earth, nature is still far ahead of us.

We can predict the weather much better than before, but we still cannot control it. We cannot stop a cyclone from forming or safely weaken it before it reaches land. We cannot bring rain exactly where and when it is needed during a drought. We understand many parts of nature, but we are still learning how it truly works.

Maybe the answers already exist. Maybe the rules are already there, just like the value of π was always there before anyone calculated it.

That thought is both exciting and humbling.

Every great discovery began with someone looking at something ordinary and asking one simple question:

"Why?"

Perhaps the next great truth is already in front of us, waiting for someone curious enough to notice it.