June 2007 PrepTest, Section 3, Question 23
By Brandon Beaver | Published October 29, 2024
Type: Flaw
Difficulty:
Explanations
Selfish motives doesn’t mean a person’s promise is unreliable. I can be selfishly motivated to sell you my car. That doesn’t mean everything I say about the car is a lie. I might be lying, but what I say isn’t necessarily unreliable just because I have a motive to sell my car.
A
No, the argument presumes that if a person’s promise is selfishly motivated. We know nothing if it isn’t.
B
The conclusion says “unreliable,” not “definitively false.”
C
No, the effect of making promises is probably caused by the desire to be elected.
D
Perfect. This doesn’t go too far like B but expresses essentially the same idea: Self-interest does not necessarily make a promise unreliable.
E
This loses sight of the conclusion. The conclusion is about the promise being unreliable, not the worthiness of the politician.
Passage
Political candidates' speeches are loaded with promises and
Question 23
Which one of the following most accurately describes a flaw