August 26, 2008PowerPhrase ~ The burden of proof is on you
This PowerPhrase was submitted by a reader who is an expert in logical fallacies.
“Today at work we were reviewing a design submitted by ‘T’ that had to meet certain requirements:
Me: I don’t think that design will work.
Them: You have not proven it won’t work.
- Me: That shifts the burden of proof. You have the obligation to prove your design will work and you have not done that.
Pay attention to shifts in the burden of proof.
If someone defends their claim to have seen Elvis in the shoe store by saying ‘you can’t prove I didn’t see him’ they are attempting to shift their burden of proof to you.
But they bear the burden of proof for their extraordinary claim.
The Challenger space shuttle exploded because the managers unfairly shifted the burden of proof to the engineers: Unless you can prove it is unsafe, we will proceed with the launch. But where so many lives are at stake, those creating the risk are obligated to prove the venture is safe.”
You can read more about logic and the lack of it here, and in my eBook Unite and Concur.
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