ergo decedo (Latin for "therefore leave" or "then go off"), short for argumentum ergo decedo, colloquially referred to as The Traitorous Critic Fallacy, means responding to criticism by attacking a person's perceived favorability to an out-group as the underlying reason for the criticism rather than addressing the criticism itself. The critic is assumed to be ungrateful of the values and customs of the group or traitorous, and thus suggested that they should stay away from the issue altogether, typically by leaving the group.
Contents
ergo decedo is generally categorized as an informal fallacy and a subclass of ad hominem.
In politics
ergo decedo is directly linked in arguments with the tu quoque fallacy when addressing political criticism. As Whataboutism is used against external criticism, ergo decedo is against internal criticism.
Examples
Critic: "I think we need to work on improving United States' taxation system. The current system suffers from multiple issues that have been resolved in other places such as Canada and Europe."
Respondent: "Well, if you don't like it, why don't you just leave and go somewhere you think is better?"
Critic: "Russia's political atmosphere is unsuitable for starting constructive conversations about reforms for the future of the country. A number of improvements are needed."
Respondent: "Well, if you don't like the political system, then why are you here? You should just leave!"