One-Way Hash Arguments (FactCheck.org)
Check out this article on one-way hash arguments.
The skinny: talking points for an against healthcare (or anything else political) tend to be like a one-way hash. It’s easy to state the point, it sounds intuitive, but it’s not obvious enough in its implication that it’s easy to refute. Conversely, to effectively disprove the argument, which is usually simple to do, is actually impractical to do because the counter-evidence takes up much more space or air time to get across and is harder to follow, even though it’s often factual or at least more intellectually honest.
We all know that sound bites are often full of these types of claims, but it’s interesting to see FactCheck really talk about the approach and give great examples of how it plays out when you analyze the point-counterpoint involved.
I also like the fact that they claim most of their job consists of taking simple arguments and making them more complicated. It’s true.
