Re: Re: Re: Fort Worth


[ Follow Ups ] [ Post Followup ] [ TubeNet BBS ] [ FAQ ]

Posted by Brian C on April 23, 2003 at 09:45:49:

In Reply to: Re: Re: Fort Worth posted by . on April 23, 2003 at 09:09:42:

Not necessarily. Previously, the opinion has been offered that since there are so many tubists who are qualified -- or even over-qualified -- to fill the limited number of open orchestral spots, oddities will happen, (such as someone who made it to the finals at Boston not advancing past the first day in Fort Worth), due to the influence of random events. I find this opinion much more compelling than yours.

Your opinion is, well, I won't say what I think of it, but rather I will show how it is fallacious.

We start with a factual statement: "The chair has been covered very well for the last two years." You append an imperative statement:"...[T]hen the guy who has been occupying the job should win it." Quite clearly you have committed the naturalistic fallacy. We cannot derive the imperative that he ought win the job from the fact that he has covered the job very well for the last two years.

If the previous opinion I describe above is accurate, then it is quite likely that he has covered the job very well for the last two years and it is also quite possible that he ought not and will not win the job for reasons unrelated to the success with which he has covered the job. The outcome will, of course, be that the orchestra hires whom they consider the best fit, but it is not related to how the incumbent has performed the last two years.





Follow Ups: