Genuine but Insignificant Cause

The object or event identified as the cause of an effect is a genuine cause, but insignificant when compared to the other causes of that event. Note that this fallacy does not apply when all other contributing causes are equally insignificant. Thus, it is not a fallacy to say that you helped defeat the incumbent because you voted for her opponent because your vote had as much weight as any other vote, and hence is equally a part of the cause. For example:

"Smoking is causing air pollution."

"By leaving your oven on overnight, you are contributing to global warming."

Wrong Direction

The relation between cause and effect is reversed. For example:

"Leaves wiggling on trees makes the wind blow."

Complex Cause

The effect is caused by a number of objects or events, of which the cause identified is only a part. A variation of this is the feedback loop where the effect is itself a part of the cause. For example:

"The Challenger explosion was caused by the cold weather. (True, however, it would not have occurred had the O-rings been properly constructed.)

"People are in fear because of increased crime. (True, but this has led people to break the law as a consequence of their fear, which increases crime even more.)

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