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SESK: Stuff Everyone Should Know · sesk.info/cadet-fallacy-post-hoc

'I wore my lucky socks and aced the test, so the socks did it.' Which fallacy is that?

Post hoc: after this, so because of this.

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  1. Ad hominem
  2. Appeal to authority
  3. Post hoc ✔

Why: Post hoc assumes that because one thing came first, it caused the second. Two things happening together (correlation) is not proof that one caused the other (causation).

Huh, didn't know that: The full Latin name is post hoc ergo propter hoc, 'after this, therefore because of this.'

The dad joke
My rooster crows and then the sun comes up. Pretty sure he's in charge of mornings.
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References

Answer: Post hoc. Post hoc assumes that because one thing came first, it caused the second. Two things happening together (correlation) is not proof that one caused the other (causation).

  1. Learn to Lead Volume 2, Chapter 5, Logical Fallacies (Civil Air Patrol) www.gocivilairpatrol.com/media/cms/Vol2LetterLowFinal_8BDFDB373E830.pdf
    Something happens and then something else happens. Does that mean that the first thing caused the second? Not necessarily.
    Checked 2026-10-10.

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