I couldn’t help but compare the ducks in Fairbanks, Alaska, who refuse to fly south for the winter, to our welfare system. Instead of going south, four ducks have set up housekeeping there because people keep feeding them. The biologist dealing with the ducks said that while it’s nice that people are concerned, in the long run it isn’t good for the ducks because it conditions them to stay when they need to get to warmer temperatures. Our welfare system, in many instances, conditions people to stay on welfare. Compassion is a wonderful virtue, and we need to help people who need help, but is it compassionate to keep people on welfare who should be developing and using their God-given abilities to do for themselves what the government is doing for them?

Most of the following selections were taken from letters-to-the-editor columns of news papers and magazines. Identify any fallacies that may be committed, giving a brief explanation for your answer. Then, if a fallacy is identified, discuss the possible factors that led the arguer to commit the fallacy.