To the editor:

Perhaps the most common fallacy in our thinking across the political landscape is that of ad hominem, the attack on the individual rather than the argument. We call people “uneducated, elitist, ignorant, intolerant, stupid, bigoted, greedy” or any other slew of emotional insults in order to avoid careful analysis of what they had to say. We are quicker to judge alleged motives than actions and logic. Committing ad hominem is easier than thinking, and, boy, is it effective. Just stigmatize someone (whether they’re on the left or right doesn’t seem to matter), and others often follow in dismissing their arguments, no matter how rational they may be.

A professor I know once pointed out that “Who’s to say?” has become one of the deadly questions in our culture. Perhaps we should not focus so much on who is saying it but rather on what is being said, and whether it is valid, sound and beneficial.

Whether in the news, letters to the editor or everyday speech, we would do well to cut straight to the argument and avoid the temptation to dismiss the individual because we see the opportunity. George Orwell was right when he saw the potential for Westerners to lose the ability to think logically or coherently. Our inability to think will have no positive consequences for our republic, and the negative consequences are just beginning.