APPEAL TO COMMON BELIEF
argumentum ad populum
(also known as: ....
appeal to the majority....
Description:*
When the claim that most or many people in general or of a particular group accept a belief as true is presented as evidence for the claim. Accepting another person’s belief, or many people’s beliefs, without demanding evidence as to why that person accepts the belief,
is lazy thinking and a dangerous way to accept information.
Logical Form:
A lot of people believe X.
Therefore, X must be true.
Example #1:
Up until the late 16th century, most people believed that the earth was the center of the universe.*
This, of course, is not true.
http://www.logicallyfallacious.com/i...-common-belief