[题目]
The following appeared in a proposal from the economic minister of the country of Paraterra.
"In order to strengthen its lagging economy, last year the government of the nearby country of Bellegea began an advertising campaign to promote ecologically sound tourism (ecotourism). This year the number of foreign visitors arriving at Bellegea's main airport doubled, and per capita income in Bellegea increased by ten percent. To provide more income for the population of Paraterra and also preserve the natural environment of our tiny country, we too should begin to promote ecotourism. To ensure that our advertising campaign is successful, we should hire the current director of Bellegea's National Tourism Office as a consultant for the campaign."
[正文]
The economic minister proposed that Paraterra should take the same action of advertising campaign to promote ecotourism strengthen its economy and hire the current director of Bellegea's NTO as a consultant for the campaign by citing the evidence that this measure was just adopted in the near by country of Bellegea. To support his claim, the minister cites the fact about increasing of the number of foreign visitors and per capita income in Bellegea. Close scrutiny of each of these facts, however reveals that none of them lend credible support to the author’s assumptions.
A threshold assumption upon which this recommendation relies is that the AD campaign in Bellegea successfully promoted its ecotourism in the first place. But the minister fails to substantiate this crucial problem. If Bellegea began an AD campaign last year but the ecotourism had not receive any positive effect, then any change in Bellegea’s economy cannot be attribute to it. Accordingly, the minister cannot draw any firm conclusion about similar measure would take in Paraterra.
Even assuming that the campaign does succeed in Bellegea, the recommendation relies on the addition assumption that this course of action was responsible for the case that the number of foreign visitors arriving at Bellegea’s main airport doubled. However, it is entirely possible that the vast majority of visitors came to Bellegea for some art festivals or high-tech exhibitions rather than ecotourism. Besides, the visitors who took plane can seldom typify all the foreign tourists. Perhaps a large percentage of them chose traveling by landway or waterway. For that matter, perhaps while the number of aero-travelers is increasing the total amount of tourists might decrease, and on the contrary it contradict with the author’s first assumption that the campaign is effective.
Nor does the fact that per capita income in Bellegea increased by 10% lend significant support to the author’s claim. Without given any of essential information, the author cannot convince me that any causal relationship exists between the campaign and increasing income of Bellegea’s population. It is equally possible that the development of industry or the good harvest of agriculture or even the inflation may enlarge the amount of income.
Moreover, even granted that the rising economy were attributed to the AD campaign which promoted the ecotourism in Bellegea, the minister fails to consider possible dissimilarities between Bellegea and Paraterra that might bring about a different result for Paraterra. As we known, the ecotourism should base on the own nature environment and landscape resources of a country and that the experience and measures adaptable in Bellegea may not suit for Paraterra. For instance, Paraterra might be famous of its antiquities such as architecture and garden, and in which case foreign visitors would find the advertisement for ecotourism in Paraterra an uncomfortable blague or even cajole.
Finally, the minister come to the conclusion that they should hire the current director of Bellegea's NTO as a consultant for the campaign without considering following questions: whether the director is in charge of the ecotourism department; whether he is familiar with the feature and actuality of Paraterra; whether there is a competitive relationship between the two countries and whether he could really help Paraterra to carry out the same measure.
In sum, the recommendation relies on certain doubtful assumptions that render it unpersuasive as it stands. To bolster it the author must provide clear evidence- perhaps by way of survey or study- that the AD campaign to promote ecotourism, and not other factors, strengthened the economy of Bellegea. The minister must also provide evidence that other factors would ensure the campaign carried out in the two countries are otherwise essentially the same.