Logical Weakness

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Logical Weakness

by dhirajdas53 » Sun Apr 21, 2013 7:35 pm
The new nation of Rimbaria has a parliament that is divided into two houses, upper and lower. For a bill to become law, two-thirds of the upper house and one-half of the lower house must approve the bill. The president, however, can block passage of the bill. A new bill that would legalize casino gambling has received unanimous approval from the upper house, and majority approval from the lower house. In addition, the president does not plan to block the bill, in which case it must therefore become law.

Which of the following best identifies a logical weakness in the argument above?

1. The author assumes that a particular criterion for the passage of a bill into law will be met, though this is not made certain.
2.The author has not clarified the full criteria for the passage of a bill into law.
3. The author does not take into account the opinions of the citizens of Rimbaria.
4. The conclusion is actually contrary to the evidence provided.
5. The author does not take into account whether the passage of the bill into law would be sufficient to guarantee the success of casino gambling in Rimbaria.









Can someone please explain why A is wrong?

Veritas Explanation: The conclusion states that the bill will become law IF the president does not block the bill. The exact wording - "in which case" - implies that the passage does depend on this factor. Therefore, the president's approval is NOT assumed.

I didn't get the above explanation.
Source: — Critical Reasoning |

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by Gowri@CrackVerbal » Mon Apr 22, 2013 1:49 am
For a bill to become a law in Rimbaria, there are certain conditions (various criteria for passing of the bill by the upper and lower houses, plus the president's sanction). But are these the only conditions required for a bill to become a law? Maybe a citizen vote is also required. Or a trial period. Thus, we don't know what other factors are also required conditions for a bill to become a law. This is the logical fallacy in the given argument.

Option A says "The author assumes that a particular criterion for the passage of a bill into law will be met, though this is not made certain."
A is wrong because the author has not 'assumed' anything that is 'not made certain'. The new bill has received unanimous approval from the upper house, majority approval from the lower house and the president does not plan to block the bill. These are not assumptions - they are stated conditions.

I hope the difference is clear to you now. :)
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by dhirajdas53 » Mon Apr 22, 2013 10:30 am
Thanks Gauri for your response.

Does the premises:

"Casino gambling has received unanimous approval from the upper house, and majority approval from the lower house"

meet the above criteria. I think, we can't be sure. And, hence, I choose A

What is your view on this?

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by Gowri@CrackVerbal » Tue Apr 23, 2013 2:43 am
Dhiraj,
Answer option A says that the author is 'assuming' criteria that are not certain to be met. However, the premises you pointed out are stated with certainty - no assumptions are being made.
Last edited by Gowri@CrackVerbal on Tue Apr 23, 2013 7:07 am, edited 1 time in total.
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by hutch27 » Tue Apr 23, 2013 7:02 am
Thanks gowri, that was very helpful. I chose A, too... Now I understand why it's wrong. I'm more certain this time the answer is b