The per capita argument is a red herring fallacy
Discussion
I want to discuss the fallacy of the per capita argument being applied incorrectly to many common modern talking points and issues today. Let’s take crime for example as one of the most major issues this red herring is applied to.
According to the FBI database white people make up about 70% of the criminal population in America while black people make up about 27% of the criminal population. However when talking about crime, black people are usually listed as the most major contributors to the crime problem in America. The argument is usually based on the calculation of per capita the population and ratios at who is committing the crimes.
The problem with the per capita argument as it’s presented in this very specific example is that it’s a red herring fallacy. An irrelevant point that shifts the blame from the most major contributing factor of all crimes which is the white population. It’s a way to minimize the actual main problem of white crime by shifting the blame to a “per capita” argument.