Welcome to another edition of Logical Fallacies Bootcamp, wherein I explain a common logical fallacy and give a few examples. I hadn’t necessarily planned on another one so soon, but the first was well received, so I decided to get another one out there this weekend while I had the time.
What is a logical fallacy? It’s flawed or deceptive argument. In some cases people fall into them unintentionally. In other cases, people will use them deliberately to try to score points in an argument or in an attempt to derail the argument entirely. It is good to be familiar with these, because they are frequently used in politics and indeed in other arguments you may run across in life. By becoming familiar with these, you not only can spot them when others use them, but you can self-examine your own views and arguments to avoid falling into a logical fallacy trap and make your arguments tighter.
On that note, let’s take a look at the Slippery Slope fallacy:
The “Slippery Slope” argument is a very commonly used logical fallacy. Basically, it is claiming that doing X will result in a chain reaction of events that end up causing unintended consequence Y, with Y usually being a very undesirable outcome. This outcome is often of an extreme nature and often targeted to trigger an emotional reaction, usually fear or anger, in order to divert the argument from the actual point being debated to the hypothetical extreme result. This claim is made with little or no evidence that Y will automatically follow from X happening.
Not all arguments of this type are Slippery Slope arguments: sometimes, a reasonable case can be made that some event likely WILL have some undesirable consequence, either through using a logical thought process or via prior experience with a similar situation. So it is a good idea to examine the argument being made to see if the person making this claim is supporting it with relevant examples and/or sound logical arguments. Usually, fallacious arguments of this type are simply thrown out there with no supporting arguments or evidence.
But let’s take a look at some examples of Slippery Slope arguments:
“If we pass tighter gun regulations, pretty soon the government will take all our guns and only criminals will have them!”
From this statement, there’s no reason to assume that passing a law that tightens gun regulations will automatically ultimately result in gun confiscation. In fact, there is plenty of evidence to the contrary, as many laws restricting guns have been passed over the years and yet guns are extremely common in this country.
“If we reform immigration laws, pretty soon we’ll just have open borders!”
Again, no evidence that open borders results from immigration reform. Many immigration laws have been enacted over the country’s history, and yet...no open borders.
“If we teach sex ed in schools, then pretty soon all the teenagers will be having orgies and the girls will all be pregnant!”
Do I really need to explain why this one is ridiculous?
“If we allow gays to get married, pretty soon we’ll be making bestiality legal!”
Again...do I really need to explain this one?
“If we legalize marijuana, that’ll just lead to legalizing all drugs!”
Once again, the proclaimed eventual outcome doesn’t automatically follow.
These examples are fairly extreme, yet not uncommon, examples of Slippery Slope arguments. Some can be more subtle, but no less fallacious.
But again, not every “if we do THIS, then THAT will happen” argument is automatically a Slippery Slope fallacy. Usually the hallmark of a true Slippery Slope argument is an argument of extreme consequences that would potentially require a lot of interim steps that don’t logically automatically follow from the original point, and the hypothetical consequence is often designed to elicit fear, anger or outrage. If you’re debating someone, if you’re uncertain if they’re committing this fallacy, ask that they explain their reasoning behind it.
Off you go, and watch for those slippery slopes!