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SESK: Stuff Everyone Should Know · sesk.info/cadet-fallacy-false-dilemma

'Either you play a sport or you join cadets. You can't do both.' Which fallacy is that?

False dilemma, pretending there are only two choices.

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  1. False dilemma ✔
  2. Red herring
  3. Post hoc

Why: A false dilemma claims you must pick one of just two options. It often comes from not thinking creatively enough to see a third way.

Huh, didn't know that: Learn to Lead tells how Navy Commander Jeremiah Denton, a prisoner of war, found a third way by blinking a secret message in Morse code.

The dad joke
Cake or pie? False dilemma. I choose both.
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References

Answer: False dilemma. A false dilemma claims you must pick one of just two options. It often comes from not thinking creatively enough to see a third way.

  1. Learn to Lead Volume 2, Chapter 5, Logical Fallacies (Civil Air Patrol) www.gocivilairpatrol.com/media/cms/Vol2LetterLowFinal_8BDFDB373E830.pdf
    The premise behind the false dilemma is that we are faced with two, but only two choices
    Checked 2026-10-10.

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