Appeal to consequences, or argumentum ad consequentiam, is an attempt to motivate belief with an appeal either to the good consequences of believing or the bad consequences of disbelieving, without respect to the quality of the evidence supporting such an argument.
Of course, there can be consequences to a belief, as long as it is supported by evidence.
Examples of appeals to consequences.
- Belief in the theory of evolution leads to eugenics; therefore the theory of evolution is false.
- The existence of gravity would make falling from a height onto a hard surface unpleasant, therefore gravity cannot exist.