A critic argues: 'Those who favor public transit subsidies want to completely ban private automobiles and confiscate all personal cars.' What flaw is evident?
Answer and explanation
Correct answer: B. straw man
- Step 1: The critic exaggerates and distorts the pro-transit policy position into an extreme, authoritarian caricature that nobody proposed. Attacking a fabricated, distorted version of an opponent's argument is a straw man fallacy. Answer: straw man. Why not the others: "circular reasoning" restates the claim in different words rather than offering supporting evidence; "red herring distraction" introduces an irrelevant extraneous topic to divert attention from the central issue; "appeal to false pity" attempts to persuade by eliciting sympathy rather than presenting evidence.
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