Could someone please Help trying to identify this discussion argumental tactic or method?

Joe Camacho MKII

Hello guys, hopefully someone will be able to understand what I am going to try to describe, because I'm currently going mad trying to search for it online and I can't see to find if this argument or discussion tactic has a name or something. I thought it was a fallacy but I can't see to find it on the several fallacy lists I have found.

Anyway, what I'm try to identify is the following, it is pretty typical in political discussion regarding policy:

When someone is arguing for or against X topic or policy, another person just states: "There are other MORE important topics to address, having topic X is a waste of time/is not important to take care of until we deal with THIS other important issues."; instead of arguing against topic X, trying to dismiss topic X as trivial and not worth discussing. Sometimes they also imply that taking care of topix X somehow implies or means that no other matters are being taken care of, as if governments or institutions can only take care of one task at a time.

I am not even sure if it has a name, but I know that if there is a group of classy gentlemen that can help me identify this or just confirm that this does not have a name, those guys are the posters from the PA boards.

Thanks for your time!

dispatch.o

I think I've seen that referred to as a red herring fallacy. I can't say I'm certain of it, but that may be a place to start?

Edit: Google Says

Red herring is a kind of fallacy that is an irrelevant topic introduced in an argument to divert the attention of listeners or readers from the original issue. In literature, this fallacy is often used in detective or suspense novels to mislead readers or characters or to induce them to make false conclusions.

Joe Camacho MKII

Thanks dispatch.o! I'll look into it right away! If someone has more suggestions please post them!

Elvenshae

There's a bit of "false dilemma" in there, as well, when two mutually exclusive options are presented ("work on issue X or work on issue Y") when the full breadth of options available includes working on both, neither, each in sequence, etc.

ceres

I THINK I FOUND IT because this is apparently more interesting than sleeping.

From the HUGE list on wikipedia:

- Fallacy of relative privation ("not as bad as") – dismissing an argument or complaint due to the existence of more important problems in the world, regardless of whether those problems bear relevance to the initial argument.

It is a type of Red Herring fallacy.

ceres

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZwEgmPpS650

dispatch.o

I'm stoked I remembered something someone way smarter than me said once in D&D and it ended out not being wrong.

Joe Camacho MKII

Thank you so much @Elvenshae and @ceres !! I guess this topic can be closed now, I took notes of all of the fallacies and they will help a lot!