False choice

The logical fallacy of false choice is a correlative based fallacy in which options are presented as being exclusive when they may not be.

Related Topics:
Logical fallacy - Correlative based fallacy

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It's often used to obscure the likelihood of one option or to reframe an argument on the user's terms.

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Examples include:

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• "The CIA director has misled the nation using false intelligence; he must either be incompetent or lying."

There's nothing to prevent someone from being both incompetent and a liar, or from being neither (there might be an entirely separate reason for the use of false intelligence).

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This fallacy is also known as Morton's Fork.

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Either the nobles of this country appear wealthy, in which case they can be taxed for good; or they appear poor, in which case they are living frugally and must have immense savings, which can be taxed for good.

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