Slippery Slope
Definition:
In order to show that a proposition is unacceptable, a sequence of increasingly unacceptable events is claimed to follow from it. A slippery slope is an illegitimate compositing of the"if- then" operator. Of course this ought to be distinguished from pointing out a chain of causal consequences from a choice or position. The difference is that in a slippery slope fallacy the intermediate causal connections are unproven.
Examples:
(i) If we pass laws against private nuclear weapons, then it won't be long before we pass laws against guns, and then we will begin to restrict other rights, and finally we will end up living in a communist state. Thus, we should not ban private nuclear weapons.
(ii) You should never gamble. Once you start gambling you find it hard to stop. Soon you are spending all your money on gambling, and eventually you will turn to crime to support your earnings.
(iii) If I make an exception for you then I have to make an exception for everyone.
Proof:
Identify the proposition being refuted and identify the final event in the series of events. Then show that this final event need not occur as a consequence of the proposition.
References:
Cedarblom and Paulsen: 137
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