#3 - Mayor of Plainsville: In order to help the economy of

[Administrator]

Complete Question Explanation

Assumption-CE. The correct answer choice is (B)

This is a strange argument, at least as far as what the Citizen's group says.

The mayor wants to build a highway to attract new business. The citizens conclude that the mayor has interests other than their economy in mind. This is because if the mayor were really interested in helping their economy, she would build a new business park instead, which would bring in twice as much business. The debate is thus causal in nature, with the mayor stating that the cause of using the tax revenues is to help the economy, and the citizen's group claiming the cause is something other than an intent to help the economy.

This is an Assumption question, and it is difficult to prephrase a good answer here. This happens frequently in Assumption questions, so simply move on to the answers if nothing jumps to mind.

When you are in the answers, keep in mind that you are looking for what is necessary for the citizens to conclude that the mayor has interests other than the economy in mind. Try the assumption negation technique here if an answer looks good: if negating any of the answer choices would destroy the citizens' argument, that is the correct answer. Negating incorrect answer choices, in contrast, would not destroy the citizens' argument.

Answer choice (A): This answer choice is incorrect because even if Plainsville has a major highway running through it, this does not address any contention of the citizens that the mayor has other interests in mind than the economy.

Answer choice (B): This is the correct answer choice. If the mayor does not believe that a new business park would be better than a new highway for the economy, the citizens cannot fault him for opting for the latter. The mayor could still be interested in only helping the economy, but according to his understanding of what would be best for the economy, which may differ from that of the citizens.

Answer choice (C): This answer choice is incorrect. Even if the new highway has other benefits besides attracting new businesses, this does not destroy the argument about the mayor's own interests.

Answer choice (D): This answer choice is incorrect. Again, this does not address the mayor's own interests.

Answer choice (E): This answer choice is incorrect because it is not essential to the citizens' argument. Even if the economy were to be helped in the absence of the new business park (by say, a new highway), the citizens argue that it would be helped more by the new business park.

[lathlee]

correct answer choice B) is This is connector and supporting assumption answer . right?

[nicholaspavic]

Hi lathlee,

Correct! This is an Assumption question about cause and effect. Well done and keep up the good work!

[Jay]

Hello Powerscore

I still don't understand why B is correct.

If you negate (B), it goes

The mayor does not accept that a new business park would bring in more new business than would the new highway.

But why would citizens' group's argument that New Business Park is a better idea than highway be destroyed if you negate (B)? or even if the conclusion of citizens' group were to be that mayor has interests other than the economy, why would negation of (B) matter? Ultimately, whether or not major accepts that New business Park is better idea than New highway, the citizens' group's argument , that New business park is a better idea , still holds.

Rather I chose (C) because

negation of (C) goes " the new highway would have benefits for Plainsville other than attracting new business."

this would totally weaken the Citizen's group's argument that New Business park is better than new high way. If there's other benefits that new high way offer (say, less traffic congestion) that would outweigh the expected additional benefits that new business park can offer, then this would totally destroy the citizen's group's argument.

Please help!
Thank you

[Adam Tyson]

The Citizens' Group must believe that the Mayor KNOWS (or at least believes) that the business park would be better for the economy, Jay. Otherwise, there would be no reason to doubt his claimed motive of helping the economy. Imagine a similar argument:

I say that I bought roses for my wife in order to make her happy. Her best friend says "she like hydrangeas much more than roses, so clearly you weren't all that interested in making her happy."

What if I had no idea that she like hydrangeas so much? If that was totally new info to me, then her best friend's argument that I wasn't trying to make her happy falls apart. She has no evidence that my choice of roses was not intended to make my wife happy!

Since the Citizens' Group's ONLY evidence of a hidden motive on the part of the mayor is that there was a better option available (the business park), if it turns out that the mayor had no idea that the park would be better, or if the mayor disagreed about that position, then his opponents no longer have any evidence against his stated motive. Their argument becomes worthless.

Negating C, on the other hand, not only doesn't ruin the argument, it might strengthen it! If the highway has other benefits, then perhaps those other benefits were the real motive behind the mayor's decision? Those benefits may not be about the region's economy, after all. The group must actually be assuming something like "there IS a hidden benefit that the mayor isn't disclosing, and that is his real motive!"

I hope that helps clear it up for you! And now I really should run out and get my wife some hydrangeas. She really does love them!

[Jay]

Thank you! That really helps!

[pwfquestions]

As above, "mayor stating that the cause of using the tax revenues is to help the economy, and the citizen's group claiming the cause is something other than an intent to help the economy"

Isn't this meant to say "effect"? The effect is to help the economy, the cause is the use of tax revenues.

[Adam Tyson]

Helping the economy would be an effect, pwfquestions, but intending to help the economy is a cause. The ideas of intention, motive, and bias are all causal ideas, as in "I took this action because I had this motive," or "He intended to accomplish X, which is why he did Y." Your intentions, desires, motives, etc. are things that influence your actions, and that means they are causes.

So here, the question is why the mayor used tax revenues to build the highway. Was it caused by her desire to help the economy, or was it caused by some other motive?