If the counterfactuals’ plausibilities boil down to “I said so”, then so does the entire argument.
It depends what kind of argument is being made via presenting the counterfactual. If it is challenging the generalisability of a strategy (like a moral system or a decision theory) then an implausible counterfactual is just what is needed. Plausibility would be a distraction.
It depends what kind of argument is being made via presenting the counterfactual. If it is challenging the generalisability of a strategy (like a moral system or a decision theory) then an implausible counterfactual is just what is needed. Plausibility would be a distraction.