(May 23, 2013 at 3:50 pm)Statler Waldorf Wrote:(May 23, 2013 at 2:26 pm)Cthulhu Dreaming Wrote: More correctly, depending on the reasoning of said authority. Authorities with quality credentials can still have lousy reasoning.
That’s not always the case, for example if the argument is concerning the verdict in a trial and someone makes an appeal to the jury's ruling, that’s not a fallacious appeal to authority because the jury has the proper authority or credentials to be the one determining the verdict of the trial.
So I guess O.J. Simpson didn't kill his wife because the jury said so? Truth is truth, not a highly qualified opinion. No matter how much authority or credentials someone has it doesn't make them a standard bearer for truth.