Does Your Mom Know? Epistemic Fallacies: Heated Rivalry & Vojislav Šešelj

"DOES YOUR MOM KNOW?" — HEATED RIVALRIES & LOADED QUESTIONS
What do the hit TV show Heated Rivalry and the Hague war crimes trials have in common? They both hinge on the "Exponable Statement"—a logical trap where a question hides a dangerous secret.
In the courtroom, Dr. Vojislav Šešelj famously dismantled witnesses by exposing "loaded questions" (like the viral "Does your mom know you're gay?" paradox) that couldn't be answered with a simple Yes or No. On HBO's Heated Rivalry, hockey stars Shane Hollander and Ilya Rozanov face the exact same logical nightmare every time they step in front of a camera: How do you answer questions about a "rivalry" that doesn't exist, without revealing the love affair that does?
Join us for a 2-hour interactive workshop where we will:

• Watch clips of Shane and Ilya dodging the press and analyze them using Modal Logic (Possible Worlds).
• Dissect the famous Šešelj courtroom exchanges to understand the Complex Question Fallacy.
• Learn how to spot (and disarm) "loaded questions" in your own life—whether you're cross-examining a witness or just trying to keep a secret.

Come for the hockey romance. Stay for the formal logic.

## Part 1: The "Loaded Question" (0:00 - 0:30)

Focus: The PR Trap vs. The Legal Trap
Hook: Play a clip from the show where Shane/Ilya are being interviewed by sports media (or describe the scenario).

### 1. The Concept: "The Interview Trap"

• The Scenario: In the show, reporters ask Shane questions like, "Do you hate Ilya?" or "Who is the better man?"
• If Shane answers honestly, he reveals the secret (Love).
• If he lies, he maintains the "Rivalry."
• The Logic Transition: This is exactly what Vojislav Šešelj did in court.
• The Quote: Show the Šešelj meme: "Does your mom know you are gay?"
• Explain: Just like Shane cannot answer a reporter's question if it contains a hidden trap, a witness cannot answer Šešelj's question because it contains a Hidden Exponent (premise).

### 2. Exercise: "The Press Conference"

• Activity: One student plays the "Reporter" (Prosecutor), one plays the "Closeted Athlete" (Defendant).
• Goal: The Reporter must ask a Loaded Question that forces the Athlete to reveal a secret if they answer "Yes" or "No."
• Example: "Does your boyfriend know you missed practice?" (Hidden premise: You have a boyfriend).
• Defense: The Athlete must use the "Šešelj Defense" (Logic) to dismantle the question instead of answering it.
• Correct Answer: "I reject the existential quantifier that there is a 'boyfriend,' therefore your question has no truth value."

***

## Part 2: The Secret Premise (0:30 - 1:00)

Focus: Exponable Statements
Theme: "The Closet" as a Logical Structure

### 1. Theory: Decomposing the Statement

• Context: In "Heated Rivalry," the statement "Shane and Ilya are rivals" is an Exponable Statement.
• Surface: They hate each other.
• Underneath (The Hidden Premise): They are obsessed with each other.
• Link to Video (Joe Folley): Use the section on Truth-Functional Analysis.
• Explain that truth depends on the underlying variables. If the underlying variable (Hate) is False, then the statement "They are Rivals" is logically False, even if it looks True on TV.

### 2. Exercise: "Anatomy of a Rumor"

• Task: Take a piece of gossip from the TV show (e.g., "Ilya is a party boy").
• Action: Break it down into logical atoms ($P, Q, R$).
• $P$: Ilya goes to parties.
• $Q$: Ilya enjoys them.
• $R$: Ilya brings girls home.
• Twist: If $R$ is false (because he prefers Shane), the whole "Party Boy" label collapses.

***

## Part 3: Modal Logic (1:00 - 1:30)

Focus: Possible Worlds
Theme: "The Long Game" (What Could Have Been)

### 1. Theory: Necessity vs. Possibility

• Context: In the show, the characters constantly worry: "If I come out, my career ends."
• Logical Analysis: This is a statement of Modal Necessity (It is necessary that X causes Y).
• The Šešelj/Legal Parallel: Šešelj argued that his speeches did not necessarily cause war crimes—there were "Possible Worlds" where he gave the speech and no one died.
• Application: We use Modal Logic to find a "Possible World" where Shane comes out and doesn't lose his career. If we can imagine that world without contradiction, the fear is not a "Logical Necessity."

### 2. Exercise: "The Alternate Timeline"

• Activity: Students must build a "Possible World" model.
• Scenario: You are the lawyer for Ilya. Prove that "Being Russian" does not Necessarily imply "Being Homophobic" (a stereotype in the show).
• Student must use logic to separate the attribute (Russian) from the predicate (Homophobic).

***

## Part 4: Epistemic Logic (1:30 - 2:00)

Focus: Who Knows What? (The Climax)
Theme: "Does Your Mom Know?"

### 1. Theory: The Knowledge Graph

• Concept: Epistemic Logic (Logic of Knowledge).
• Notation: $K_a(P)$ = "Agent A knows Proposition P."
• The Show:
• Shane knows he loves Ilya ($K_s(L)$).
• The Public does not know ($¬K_p(L)$).
• The Šešelj Trap: The question "Does your mom know?" weaponizes the gap between $K_s$ (Self-knowledge) and $K_m$ (Mom's knowledge).

### 2. Final Showdown: "Logic Hockey"

• Format: Split the room into Team Shane (Defense) vs. Team Media (Prosecution).
• The Puck: The "Puck" is a logical statement.
• The Game:
• Team Media throws a Loaded Question.
• Team Shane must "block" it by identifying the Fallacy (Exponable, Modal, or Epistemic).
• Win Condition: If Team Shane answers "Yes/No" to a trap, they let in a goal. If they decompose the logic, they save the goal.