A paradox in applied philosophy analogous to Heisenberg's Uncertainty Principle.
Tenet 1 - Advice or information taken from Zeno at face value will always be wrong.
Tenet 2- Investigation or contestation of any information taken from Zeno will always show it to be correct.
Corollary to Tenet 2- When such a contest is resolved in Zeno's favor (as it always will be) the contesting party will be severely mocked.
Therefore, interaction with Zeno will always result in the interacting party coming away wronged or mocked.
Tenet 1 - Advice or information taken from Zeno at face value will always be wrong.
Tenet 2- Investigation or contestation of any information taken from Zeno will always show it to be correct.
Corollary to Tenet 2- When such a contest is resolved in Zeno's favor (as it always will be) the contesting party will be severely mocked.
Therefore, interaction with Zeno will always result in the interacting party coming away wronged or mocked.
A bargain leather jacket was purchased on the basis of Zeno's insistence that it was real leather. As it turned out, it was not real leather. Forty dollars was lost when a hot fork punctured a whole in it.
But mocking ensued when, despite everyone's doubts and harangues, Zeno's method for estimating hourly television power costs turned out to be completely correct.
According to Tenet 1 of the paradox, if the leather jacket had not been purchased, it would in fact have been real leather.
According to Tenet 2 of the paradox, if Zeno's method for power estimation had not been knocked, the estimates it provided would have been grossly erroneous.
But mocking ensued when, despite everyone's doubts and harangues, Zeno's method for estimating hourly television power costs turned out to be completely correct.
According to Tenet 1 of the paradox, if the leather jacket had not been purchased, it would in fact have been real leather.
According to Tenet 2 of the paradox, if Zeno's method for power estimation had not been knocked, the estimates it provided would have been grossly erroneous.
by Piggus McKenzie November 18, 2004
Get the Zeno's Paradoxmug. The futile use of verbosity or technical blather in an attempt to ascribe logic to a fallacious argument.
No matter how much technical detail you can use to explain the genetic relationship between you and that chick you kissed, I know she's your sister, and I'm not listening to your Zeno's Paradox Fallacy nonsense.
by Prattlekak September 4, 2025
Get the Zeno's Paradox Fallacymug.