Mathematics and Logic - Skill and Concept Development

Chapter 5, Deception (and Hype)

Suggestive or Misleading Questions

Recall that one question for the one-way rule

When Aunt Jane visits her nephew Tom's home, Tom goes out to play.

asked what could be said for certain about Aunt Jane when Tom goes out to play? The answer is nothing. But the wording in this question hinted or suggested that a little bit more could be said for certain about Aunt Jane. The question was slightly misleading. A less misleading question would be what, if anything, can be said for certain. You have to be aware of misleading questions. The topic of suggestive and misleading questions is discussed next.&

Are you trusting? Are you willing to politely accept everything I or someone else says or suggests without question? The phrase what can you say for sure in the above question makes you expect something could be said for sure, not nothing. You have to watch for misleading and suggestive questions in and outside of this book.

When someone tries to convince you with a suggestive chain of reasoning, you need to recognize the weak and strong links in that chain. Then you can decide for yourself whether or not to accept the suggestions or conclusions obtained. Faulty logic may hide some deliberate deception or some reparable chains of reason. In particular, you may see where the chain fails and is broken, or where the chain can be strengthened or repaired. In our thoughts, we need to identify or keep track of what is certain, what is almost sure, what is guessed, what is probable, and what is only suggested.

The next example is far-fetched in most worldly locations, but it illustrates a situation that you need to recognize. Suppose I asked how long have you been beating your elephant? This question suggests you own a mistreated elephant. A gullible, too trusting, person overhearing this question could believe (assume) you own an elephant. A gullible person overhearing the question could believe this unless you say the question is absurd because you don't own an elephant.

We all are slightly gullible. It is a matter of politeness not to challenge a speaker. On hearing a question, we like (or tend) to think each question posed is correct, honest and not misleading. But we need to continually watch for questions that are not realistic, especially if the speaker does allow us to challenge them. Their words may force upon us unchallenged assumptions or suggestions. Suggestive questions need to be recognized – if not stopped. They need to be challenged and corrected to prevent the reasoning from continuing in an absurd or deceptive direction.

A series of suggestive questions is intimidating and forceful. When the suggestions in them remain unchallenged, you may find yourself at the end of a long chain of suggestive reasoning, agreeing to or not challenging some repugnant ideas. So watch for misleading questions. The questions and possibly the speaker are false. Step by step, or question by question, such false reasoning needs to be exposed. The exposure could start with the very first question, and then the next, and the next, and so on.

When a speaker, in posing and answering suggestive questions, leads you to false or repugnant conclusions, such a speaker has lied and mislead you. Your intelligence has been deliberately or accidentally insulted. The speaker, a possible villain, has taken advantage of your politeness or silence. Faulty reason or lies may be hidden in suggestive questions.

Hype, Hype, Hype, Hooray

People try to persuade us in many ways. We need to recognize the fair and unfair ways, or the sensible and nonsensical ways. In persuading ourselves and others, we need to recognize and appreciate or reward careful logic. Efforts to persuade and lead us are met in advertising, public relations, political campaigns, religion, law, business, mathematics courses (yes), and even your family. Advertisements and sales pitches may give an excessively favorable impression of a product. That is, few people, parties or companies will point to the bad or weak parts in their service or product. Because of a favorable impression or promise, we may choose one service or product much to our later regret.

Words can be used not only to teach and inform but also to direct or misdirect others. Here different messages can be given to different people. For example in talking about an adult-only subject, a child may be given or understand one message, while the elders understand another (or both). This may give a simple, half-innocent, example of a creative, deceptive ambiguity. In time the child grows up. Delivery of two different messages at once becomes more difficult as the child learns. Double meanings are then seen by the child, and no longer useful. The child is less gullible. More blatantly, appearances and words can mislead us.

Ambiguity and inconsistency are tools of some politicians and some sales agents for whom only the result (selling a product, service or conclusion) counts. For example, a leader or salesperson may suggest different and contrary ideas to different people. Watch for this inconsistency. Does it reflect a maturing attitude or a deceptive tongue?

In honest debate between people, question and issues are addressed one by one as they appear and the course of debate is not changed to avoid answering awkward questions. Unfortunately, for the sake of persuasion, political speakers may respond to only part of a question and shift the topic of conversation, so that the original topic is neglected. It is a shallow and insulting kind of response that goes for the most part unchallenged in public debate.

Numbers, and not just words, can be used to mislead people. Numerical descriptions of situations need to be understood. Averages for instance may be computed using different ways. It is also deceptive to let people think that one calculation is used instead of another. It is also deceptive, more precisely meaningless, to use statistics without saying how they were computed. In mathematics, a statistic is just a number computed from collected data. Further examples of and warnings about numerical or statistical methods of deception can be found in the following two books.

1. How to Lie with Statistics by D. Durf, 1954, Norton and Company, ISBN -0-393-31072-8
2. Use and Abuse of Statistics by W. J. Reichmann, 1961, Pelican Books, ISBN 0-14- 02-0707-4

Ethics For Persuasion

When you want others to agree with an action or idea, how should you speak? The only way to convince others is to give them reasons acceptable to them. But in doing this, our reasons for the action or idea could be different from the ones acceptable to them. When this is the case, we should say so. In this, some diplomacy may be required. The honesty advocated here is awkward when you speak to people who do not allow reasons different from theirs for a common goal.

Selby A, Volume 1A, Pattern Based Reason, 1996.

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