Originally posted by npetreley
A Straw Man Argument is a statement you make if you want to more easily attack an opposing position. You intentionally make a silly caricature of that position, one that no one would believe, knock down that silly, unrealistic caricature, and then proclaim that the original version of the argument has been demolished. This tactic fools a lot of people.
This is one of the most unethical and cowardly of debating tactics, since you have so little confidence in your own position that you cannot even address the real position of your opponent. At the heart of the Straw Man Argument is deception.