PrepTest 142, Section 4, Question 5
Government official: Although the determination of local residents(48 more words not shown)
Which one of the following(14 more words not shown)
- AResidents should not(12 more words not shown)
- BThe determination of(17 more words not shown)
- CGovernment agencies should(14 more words not shown)
- DThe government should(18 more words not shown)
- EResidents should be(14 more words not shown)
Reading the argument
Why shouldn't the government help rebuild? Perhaps the trails will be destroyed again, and repeated rebuilding would waste money. That would be one concern. But let's see the reason the official actually gives.
The danger is another landslide that could seriously injure or kill someone. I can understand refusing to support a project on that basis. Yet the likelihood of a dangerous event is a fact; 'the government should not assist' is a recommendation. We need a rule connecting them.
What we’re looking for
The residents' commitment doesn't supply that connection. The official acknowledges that they care about their community and still opposes government assistance because of the risk. For this principle question, look for a rule saying that the government should withhold help when a project is very likely to create circumstances in which people could be seriously hurt.
Working the answers
- A
Whether residents may rebuild is different from whether the government should help them. A makes government assistance a condition for allowing the project, but it doesn't tell us when the government should refuse assistance. It therefore doesn't justify the official's decision based on danger.
- B
This makes the residents' determination the deciding factor. The official accepts that they are determined but treats the danger of another landslide as the reason to withhold help. B directs attention away from the basis the official actually uses.
- C
These residents already meet the stated requirement: they are strongly committed to their community. A rule against helping people who lack that commitment gives no reason to refuse this group. Meeting the requirement doesn't force the government to help either; C simply leaves the safety question unresolved.
- DCorrect
This supplies the needed link from serious risk to withholding assistance. Rebuilding these trails would put people back in a location with a strong likelihood of further landslides, which could seriously injure them. D says the government should not assist projects with that kind of danger.
We don't need a guarantee that another landslide will occur or someone will be hurt. The rule is about a strong likelihood of dangerous circumstances, matching the official's evidence.
- E
Discouraging residents is a different recommendation from withholding government assistance. Also, one recent landslide doesn't establish an extensive history of landslides. The official relies on the likelihood of future danger, so E doesn't give the rule that supports this argument.
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