Incorrectly crying "Ad Hominem!" when someone makes a relevant critique of the speaker's background, motives, or qualifications that legitimately affects the argument's weight. Not all personal remarks are fallacious; only those irrelevant to the topic are. This fallacy fallacy weaponizes the term to immunize speakers from any scrutiny of their bias, conflicts of interest, or expertise, treating all such scrutiny as an illegitimate personal attack.
Ad Hominem Fallacy Fallacy Example: A politician arguing for deregulating Big Pharma is revealed to hold millions in pharmaceutical stock. A commentator notes this clear conflict of interest. The politician's supporters scream "Ad hominem!" This is the Ad Hominem Fallacy Fallacy. The financial motive is not a petty insult; it's a devastatingly relevant fact for assessing the argument's integrity.
by Abzugal Nammugal Enkigal February 4, 2026
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