No True Patriot
* From “The A**HOLE’S Guide To Arguing (Or, How To Succeed In Politics)”
Essentially, the appeal to purity argument is that,
“You are not a true A, if you do (or do not) B.”
The goal of using this in a debate is usually to make the opponent appear dishonest and fake. Share on XBelow is an example where two debaters are trying to convince people that they know what a true patriot is. And that they are the true patriots.
“No true patriot wants gun control, because a patriot values the Constitution and the Second Amendment that gives everybody the right to bear arms.”
“Here we go again, with abusing the Second Amendment. You know what, if you really were a true patriot you would know what it said. That a well regulated militia has the right to bear arms. Not every Tom, Dick and Harry.”
Now, the actual definition of a patriot is someone who is willing to support their country and defend it against enemies, nothing more.
Being a patriot does not require you to have a certain set of religious, moral or political beliefs. The only belief you need hold is that if your country needs protecting, you will gladly do so. With or without guns. You’ll use dirty magazines, ketchup bottles and chopsticks if you have to.
Here is an other example of the appeal to purity and how it could be used in an abortion debate:
“If you were a real Christian (A), you would be pro-life (B).”
“Now, if you were a real Christian (A), by your own definition, wouldn’t that also make you against the death penalty? Last time I checked, the people we sentence to death – we actually kill. That’s not very pro-life (B), is it?”
Using the appeal to purity can really push people's buttons. If it is an emotional response that you are looking for and a way to get your opponent to lose their cool, this is one way to do it. Share on X
When you tell a Christian that they are not a real Christian, or a patriot that they are not a real patriot, because they do not conform to your opinions of what those things are – expect resistance.
© Merlyn Gabriel Miller
