- 最后登录
- 2013-12-6
- 在线时间
- 575 小时
- 寄托币
- 402
- 声望
- 45
- 注册时间
- 2009-1-25
- 阅读权限
- 20
- 帖子
- 8
- 精华
- 0
- 积分
- 339
- UID
- 2595060
 
- 声望
- 45
- 寄托币
- 402
- 注册时间
- 2009-1-25
- 精华
- 0
- 帖子
- 8
|
本帖最后由 ella_dyl 于 2010-2-26 18:17 编辑
Argument25:
The following appeared in a memo from the mayor of the town of Hopewell.
"Two years ago, the town of Ocean View built a new municipal golf course and resort hotel. During the past two years, tourism in Ocean View has increased, new businesses have opened there, and Ocean View's tax revenues have risen by 30 percent. The best way to improve Hopewell's economy, and generate additional tax revenues, is to build a golf course and resort hotel similar to those in Ocean View."
In this memo, the mayor advocates that Hopewell should build a golf course and resort hotel to stimulate the town’s economy. To justify this claim, the author cites the success of Ocean View by implementing such policy two years ago. The mayor believes that it is the best way to improve Hopewell's economy. Although this argument might seem reasonable at first glance, it is in fact based ill-conceived.
The threshold problem with this argument is that it is based on an incomplete comparison. The author simply assumes that Hopewell will achieve the same success as Ocean View by implementing similar policy. However, he/she does not provide any evidence that is indeed comparable. If Hopewell already has its golf course and resort hotel, will the new construction be more profitable? Moreover, we are not informed of the exact number of the tax revenues of Hopewell and Ocean View. It is entirely possible that Hopewell's tax revenues are larger even though Ocean View's have risen by 30 percent. Any of these scenarios mentioned above, if true, would cast considerable doubt on the argument's conclusion.
Even assuming that Hopewell and Ocean View do share lots of similarities, it is also hasty to draw the conclusion. Admittedly, the new golf course and resort hotel might have helped to improve the economy of Ocean View. Nevertheless, the author ignores other possibilities that may lead to the increase. Perhaps the government has passed some favorable policies which successfully attracted new business to open in Ocean View. It is also likely that some new travel cites may be developed, which results in the increase of tourism. The mayor asserts that the construction of new buildings is the determinant factor attributed to the booming economy of Ocean View, which is unfair and unwarranted.
In addition, the memo does not mention anything about if the town could continue to benefit from the golf course and hotel. As two years passed, it is likely that the buildings are not as appealing as they were. If so, the mayor should consider seriously about the cost of construction and how long the revenue it can bring.
To sum up, the conclusion reached in this argument is invalid and misleading. To strengthen the argument, the author would have to provide evidence that prove that it is the construction of the new golf course and resort hotel that was responsible for the rise of Ocean View’s economy. Moreover, the author should provide evidence that similar policy would also work in Hopewell. It is also strongly recommended that the mayor consider prudently about the cost and revenue.
|
|