The inverse of the ad hominem fallacy is the blind authority fallacy, which is equally common, especially in business. It states, “A is the ultimate authority. A made claim B. Therefore, claim B is true.” It mistakes a military leader, business leader, or impressive corporation as a sufficient condition or valid and sound premise unto itself. This is false. The businessperson’s version of this is to cite someone’s title as the reason they are right. We sometimes see this referred to as the HIPPO: the Highest Paid Person’s Opinion. The technologist’s version of this is to substitute “big
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