Crafting an argument that, while perhaps containing true premises, uses rhetorical sleight-of-hand, emotional manipulation, or procedural tricks to guide the listener to an unwarranted conclusion. It's an argument built like a funhouse mirror—the components are real, but the overall reflection is a distorted version of reality. This includes shifting burden of proof, using loaded questions, or appealing to irrelevant authority.
Example: "The lawyer bent the argument for the jury: 'My client is a family man, a volunteer, a patriot. The prosecution wants you to believe this pillar of the community suddenly became a criminal. Can you live with that doubt?' He bent the argument away from evidence and toward a narrative about the prosecution's character." Bending Argument
by AbzuInExile January 31, 2026
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