In logic, a "
red herring" is a distractor used to divert attention from otherwise important points. The name comes (in part) from using a strong-smelling fish drug across a path to distract hunting dogs away from their intended prey.
The "
red herring" is plausible and believable, not subject to fact checking, but distracts and is often not relevant to the argument being made.
In multiple choice (and other) exams, "
distractor" answers are often included in the possible answers.
In sermons, "
idle words" are often used as "
red herrings" to avoid or ignore certain parts of the Bible.
Philippians 2:6 Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: [kjv]
ος εν μορφη θεου υπαρχων ουχ αρπαγμον ηγησατο το ειναι ισα θεω [gnt]
Strawman arguments are often used to "prove" a point - by politicians and many others. Briefly, the reasoning of a strawman argument goes as follows.
