Circle Jerk Fallacy

Circle Jerk Fallacy

Related to the begging the question fallacy.

First identified by Jan Irvin in revealing how intelligence cells and networks operate by creating a network, or interlocking cells. Each cell has 2 to 3 or more members, and each may connect to another related cell. In academic cells the process is used to keep out dissenting opinions. The peer review process is related to this fallacy.

The process is explained by the following quote from Carroll Quigley's book The Anglo American Establishement:

By the interaction of these various branches on one another, under the pretense that each branch was an autonomous power, the influence of each branch was an autonomous power, the influence of each branch was increased through a process of mutual reinforcement. The unanimity among the various branches was believed by the outside world to be the result of the influence of a single Truth, while really it was the result of the existence of a single group. Thus a statesman (a member of the Group) announces a policy. About the same time, the Royal Institute of International Affairs publishes a study on the subject, and an Oxford don, a Fellow of All Souls (and a member of the Group) also publishes a volume on the subject (probably through a publishing house, like G. Bell and Sons or Faber and Faber, allied to the Group). The statesman’s policy is subjected to critical analysis and final approval in a “leader” in The Times, while the two books are reviewed (in a single review) in The Times Literary Supplement. Both the “leader” and the review are anonymous but are written by the members of the Group. And finally, at about the same time, an anonymous article in The Round Table strongly advocates the same policy. The cumulative effect of such tactics as this, even if each tactical move influences only a small number of important people, is bound to be great.<a id="ednref8" href="https://www.gnosticmedia.com/SpiesinAcademicClothing_MKULTRA#edn8" name="_ednref8">[8]</a>

~  Carol Quigley, The Anglo American Establishment, New York: Books in Focus, 1981, pp. 114 (or 96-pdf)

The structural view of the fallacy is explained in Robert Heinlen's book The Moon is a Harsh Mistress:

“Ought to take your money. Take same cells, arranged in open pyramid of tetrahedrons. Where vertices are in common, each bloke knows one in adjoining cell—knows how to send message to him, that’s all he needs. Communications never break down because they run sideways as well as up and down. Something like a neural net. It’s why you can knock a hole in a man’s head, take chunk of brain out, and not damage thinking much. Excess capacity, messages shunt around. He loses what was destroyed but goes on functioning.” […]

“Each vertex of each triangle shares self with zero, one, or two other triangles. Where shares one, that’s its link, one direction or both—but one is enough for a multipli-redundant communication net. On corners, where sharing is zero, it jumps to write to next corner. Where sharing is double, choice is again right-handed.

“Now work it with people. Take fourth level, D-for-dog. This vertex is comrade Dan. No, let's go down one to show three levels of communication knocked out-- level E-for-easy and pick Comrade Egberg.

“Egbert works under Donald, has cellmates Edward and Elmer, and has three under him, Frank, Fred, and Fatso … But knows how to send messages to Ezra on a zone level but not in his cell. He doesn't know Ezra's name, face, address, or anything-but has a way, phone number probably, to reach Ezra in emergency.

“[…] Casimir, level three, finks out and betrays Charlie and Cox in his cell, Baker above him, and Donald, Dan, and Dick in sub cell-which isolates Egbert, Edward, and Elmer. And everybody under them.

“All three reported-redundancy, necessary to any communication system-but follow Egbert's yell for help. He calls Ezra. But Ezra is under Charlie and his isolated, too. No matter, Ezra relays both messages through his safety link, Edmund. By bad luck Edmund is under Cox, so he also passes it laterally, through Enwright … And that gets it past burned-out part and it goes up through Dover, Chambers, and Beeswax, to Adam, front office… Who replies down other side of pyramid, with lateral pass on E-for-easy level from Esther to Egbert and onto Ezra and Edmund. These two messages, up and down, not only get through at once but in way they get through, they define to home office exactly how much damage has been done and where. Organization not only keeps functioning but starts repairing self at once." <a id="ednref57" href="https://www.gnosticmedia.com/SpiesinAcademicClothing_MKULTRA#edn57" name="_ednref57">[57]</a>

~ Robert A. Heinlein

Structurally speaking, the Circle Jerk fallacy would have the following physical appearance. 

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Circle Jerk Fallacy

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