Logical fallacies

ad hominem

You attacked the person. The argument is still standing there, untouched.

  • “You’d know if you had any real experience.”

    “Here’s why that approach fails.”

    Their experience isn’t the claim. The claim is the claim.

  • “Of course a landlord thinks that.”

    “That reasoning ignores X.”

    Motive can be worth noting, but it doesn’t refute anything on its own.

An argument is either sound or it isn’t, and who’s making it doesn’t change that. Hypocrites, idiots, and people you dislike are all capable of being correct, which is inconvenient but true.

The legitimate version: credibility genuinely matters when someone is asking you to take their word for something. “This expert is paid by the industry” is a fair reason to want independent evidence. It’s not a reason to conclude they’re wrong.

Now go attack the argument instead.