P-OT Cell phone Poltergeist

 

Fallacies - The cell phone poltergeist

 

P-OT - The Texas Governor's Mansion

 

Post Hoc	A thing that happens before another thing caused that.	In 1864, the govs. 19-year-old nephew began courting Mrs. Murrah's niece at the mansion. She said she didn’t want to see him anymore, so he killed himself and the room where he died is now haunted by his ghost
Hasty Generalization	A conclusion is drawn from too small a sample of evidence.	Word of mouth with no actual tests done
Wishful Thinking	Something is true because I want it to be.	Guests refused to spend the entire night in the room because they were awakened by the sound of someone banging on the wall. They also said that certain parts of the room became unbearably cold.

Fallacies - The Texas Governor's Mansion

 

Presence – space	Making it feel close.	They also said that certain parts of the room became unbearably cold.... servants refused to clean the blood splatter from the walls, saying that when they were in the room, they could hear someone crying and moaning.
Precedent	B won’t slippery slope, but it opens the door.	She said that one night, she turned off the light above Houston’s portrait and went to bed. When she awoke the next morning, she was shocked to discover the door to the bedroom was open and the light above the portrait had been turned off.
Succession	A cause-and-effect argument.	In the mid-1980s, Glenda Gale White, the wife of gov. Mark White, said she saw Sam Houston’s apparition in his bedroom. She said that one night, she turned off the light above Houston’s portrait and went to bed. When she awoke the next morning, she was shocked to discover the door to the bedroom was open and the light above the portrait had been turned off.
Division	Breaking something into parts.	Multiple mentions of different ghosts
illustration	Event strengthens adherence to a rule.	Cold spots, lights turning off, hearing sounds such as crying and moaning where someone died, supposed sighting off ghosts.