Argument ad populum ("to the people"); The writer evades the issues by appealing to readers' emotional reactions to certain subject. For example, instead of arguing the facts of an issue, a writer might play on the readers' negative response to such words as "communism." "fascism," or "radical," and their positive response to words like "Gob," "country," "liberty," or "patriotic." In the statement "If you are a true American, you will vote against the referendum on flag burning," the writer avoids any discussion of the merits or weaknesses of the bill and merely substitutes emotional appeal. Other popular "virtue words" include "duty," "common sense," "courage," and "healthy," (Advertisers, of course, also play on consumers' emotions by filling their ads with pictures of babies, animals, statue objects, and sexually attractive men and women.) defend, and the "Checkers" speech is now famous as one of the most notorious "straw man" diversions.