Argumentum ad baculum:
| Definition | Example |
| When a position is promoted through coercion or threats of force. | You’ve been a good employee up to this point, John. And I think you’ll agree that shining my shoes is not nearly as humiliating as losing your job for not shining my shoes. |
| Also known as: appeal to the stick / appeal to force | |
| Notes | |
| This fallacy works superficially. You may gain the cooperation of many through the Machiavellian use of force, but historically, those who lived by the sword often died by the sword. And the sword never changed the truth of the matter. | |
Case Study One
There are millions of people who believe that, if you do not also believe in their particular version of god, that you will be eternally tortured.
Case Study Two
In some countries, apostasy from a particular religion is deemed worthy of death. How many “believers” of a particular ideology have adopted it based on the fear of the consequences of not believing?
Keep in mind that a fallacious argument does not entail an erroneous position.
