7Dark Rethoric

Moving the Goalposts

Description

This tactic praises standards until standards are met, then invents new standards. It is not evaluation, Friend, but evasion.

Why This Works

It works where criteria were never fixed. Without an agreed finish line, effort can be endlessly declared insufficient.

Example 1

“Show one controlled study.” You provide one. Reply: “Now show five long-term trials or it proves nothing.”

Example 2

Data is delivered as requested; the other side now demands anecdotal stories and, after those, demands something else again.