RE: Allow Me to Introduce Myself
August 27, 2019 at 2:12 pm
(This post was last modified: August 27, 2019 at 2:34 pm by Objectivist.)
(August 27, 2019 at 11:55 am)Objectivist Wrote: Hi Grandizer,
The fallacy of the stolen concept was first identified by Rand. It's an error in thinking that occurs when one uses a higher-level concept while ignoring or denying a concept which the higher-level concept depends on logically. It's a breach of logic. For instance, if you accepted calculus but denied the validity of basic arithmetic, you would be guilty of concept stealing. Using logic to try to prove the existence of a god is a pretty textbook and blatant example. It renders any argument for a god instantly invalid and self-refuting. It's sometimes much harder to detect though and that's why it's so prevalent. I think it's just about the most common fallacy out there. I think it's one of Rands greatest contributions to philosophy.
"The “stolen concept” fallacy, first identified by Ayn Rand, is the fallacy of using a concept while denying the validity of its genetic roots, i.e., of an earlier concept(s) on which it logically depends." Ayn Rand, Philosophical Detection, Philosophy: Who Needs It, 22.
I would like to point out that Stolen Concept was conceived of as Ayn Rand's contribution mainly by herself and her worshipful acolytes. Quick search shows it is named as a philosophical principle mainly on Conservapedia. These acolytes seem either unaware or don't care that it is largely a wordy and rather colloquial restatement of something Aristotle had set out as a principle 2000 years before. And I am not certain even Aristotle was by any means the first to set out such a principle.
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That's kind of ironic, isn't it? I wonder if those conservatives recognize their own use of stolen concepts.
(August 27, 2019 at 2:03 pm)The Valkyrie Wrote: Welcome.
If you want to know a secret meet me in the basement. Not the bright one with the beer and hot tub, the one with no lights and the chains...
Will there still be beer though?