Single choice · #43
During a community meeting about whether to add a pet activity area, one resident says: "If we agree to build a pet area today, tomorrow someone will demand a basketball court and a swimming pool, and eventually the whole community will become a public playground." To determine whether this is a slippery slope fallacy, what is the most critical question to ask?
Show answer & explanation
Answer: B
- AHow do you know others will make these demands tomorrow?✗ Incorrect. Questioning whether others will actually make demands is not the key point, because even if someone makes a demand, it does not mean it will necessarily be approved; this question does not address the necessity of the chain.
- BIs there a necessary connection between each step from the pet area to the basketball court, swimming pool, and playground? Are there rules that could stop the chain?✓ Correct. The key to evaluating a slippery slope is whether each step necessarily leads to the next, and whether there are rules or conditions that can prevent the chain from continuing.
- CIs the pet area very popular among residents?✗ Incorrect. Popularity only reflects public opinion, not the causal link between building a pet area and building a swimming pool; this shifts the focus.
- DShould the community have public facilities?✗ Incorrect. This is a broader, abstract question that deviates from the key issue in the current argument—whether the chain reaction necessarily holds.
Explanation:To judge a slippery slope, the focus is not on how terrible the consequences are, but on whether each step is necessary. The key question is whether there is a mechanism in between that could stop the chain. The option asking about necessary connections and blocking rules directly targets the weak link of the slippery slope. The option questioning others' intentions misses the point, the one about popularity shifts to public opinion, and the one about public facilities broadens the issue—all deviate from the core of the slippery slope chain.