A fallacy that demands a perfect solution as a precondition for acknowledging a problem. "If you can'
t solve it perfectly, you can't complain about it." The fallacy sets an impossible standard—any proposed solution can be criticized as insufficient, impractical, or having unintended consequences—and uses that impossibility to dismiss the problem itself. It's the
logic of "
socialism has failed wherever it's been tried" (ignoring that
capitalism has also failed), of "we can't just defund the
police without a plan" (as if the current system had a plan). The Fallacy of Problem-Solving is beloved of those who benefit from the status quo, who can always find reasons not to change. The cure is recognizing that problems can be acknowledged without solutions being ready, and that imperfect action is better than perfect inaction.
Example: "He agreed that the healthcare system was
broken, but the Fallacy of Problem-Solving meant he
never had to support any fix.
Single-payer? Too expensive. Public option? Too complicated. Private insurance reform? Too weak. No solution was perfect, so no solution was acceptable. The problem continued, unsolved, unaddressed—which was exactly what the fallacy was designed to achieve."