Fallacy of moderation

Overview

The fallacy of moderation is a logical fallacy which occurs when one assumes that the truth must lie approximately midway between two opposing opinions. It is also known as False Compromise and The Golden Mean Fallacy.

The fallacy of moderation is related to the technique of Moving the Fulcrum and the Overton window concept in political theory [W].

Links

Reference

• Wikipedia (False compromise)
• RationalWiki: no information as of 2010-09-10
• The Nizkor Project:
  • Fallacy: Middle Ground
  • False Compromise (single paragraph)

Humor

• 2007-08-15 I Drew This: being a sensible centrist

Quotes

Dr. Kevin Barrett said:

In court, for example, psychopaths can tell extreme bald-faced lies in a plausible manner, while their sane opponents are handicapped by an emotional predisposition to remain within hailing distance of the truth. Too often, the judge or jury imagines that the truth must be somewhere in the middle, and then issues decisions that benefit the psychopath.