AD HOMINEM- ITS MEANING

1. directed against a person rather than against his arguments
2. based on or appealing to emotion rather than reason
The word ad hominem is Latin  in origin- Although the word is seldom used today, the spirit  still lives on. This is how it manifests. When someone is losing an argument, they suddenly start to belittle your character. Very subtly, the argument shifts,and  almost imperceptively, from the academic to the moral.
PS. Avoid wars of morality-its just a stupid waste of time.