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chii12/09/20251 replyview on HN

> Saying party X plans to do something

but that's not the whole thing being said.

Party X may have been planning on something, but party Y threw a wrench in the middle, causing party X to have to make some response. By implication, party X believes party Y to be throwing a wrench, hence, party X must act. Therefore, party Y also must be planning something that counteracts party X's desires. If it weren't so, party X would not act (as that costs money).


Replies

dragonwriter12/09/2025

The thing that contradicts Party X's desires can just be not doing the thing Party X wants done, it doesn't have to be doing an equal and opposite thing.

This seems like a variation on the fallacy of the excluded middle.

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