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I don't know where this meme started. Taxi drivers have never set their own rates and have always been contractors.


Huge generalization that says nothing about what taxi drivers you are talking about. Taxi Drivers in Estonia for example have been able to set their own rates for a long time.


This is an interesting flavor of ad hominem. While the post isn't a personal attack, it severely degrades the argument by calling it a 'meme'. Omitting the first sentence, and leaving the second, would be far more effective.

https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7512/15985103560_ed7985fc2a_o...


Would it be better if I called it a "misconception" perhaps? If it matters, I meant it in the "idea that spreads between people" sense, not the animal-gif-with-block-text sense.


People are deserving of respect, arguments less so. I see no reason to grant any particular deference to a sentence.


Saying an argument is false because it's a meme isn't a rational way to argue against a thought. You argue against things with facts and evidence. It's more disrespectful of the opposition if that's the strongest remark the opposition can make.

I suppose the great-grandparent is more an 'appeal to emotion' fallacy rather than ad hominem.


The word "meme" isn't doing any argumentative work here. It's just a handle for the claim that's being contested, with some extra connotation that the claim is typical or customary rather than unique to this thread.




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