Theists often try to turn logic upside down. To give an example, when they insist that if one does not accept their claim of the existence of a god, one must prove that god doesn’t exist, and take the fact, that if you can’t, as proof that he does. To show you how silly that is, let’s pretend that I believe Superman exists, because I have a book that says so. If someone does not believe me, I insist that he/she proves that he is not real. When that person fails to do so, I take that as proof that Superman is real.
Pseudo-science, where lots of scientific terms are used to make it look like real science, rely on the gullibility of many people who do not know how, or are too lazy, to research the reliability of the sources used.
Many short quotes, out of context, from prominent people, such as Albert Einstein or Stephen Hawking, are also often used to give the impression that these people have beliefs, which are congruent with their worldview, while on closer examination they do not have.
Then there is the “God of the gaps” arguments. “Science does not have an answer for this, therefor there MUST be a God”. No, let’s wait, science is making progress at an accelerating rate so let’s not be to quick to make final conclusions. There is also the tendency to jump on any new findings in Science to “prove”, often with very contorted reasoning, that God, or the supernatural, exist such as the misuse and misunderstanding of Quantum Physics.
Here is a short list of comments that I will be tempted to ignore.
- Requests to proof the negative of a claim made.
- Those who answer a question, with a question.
- Ad hominem attacks.
- Statements or conclusions made, without any validation of their correctness.