第一个问题:答案转自孙远讲义 hope it help. ........This argument commits two critical fallacies. In the first place, this argument commits a fallacy of causal oversimplification. The arguer assumes that an increase in the supply of cocaine is sufficient to bring about an increase in its use. While the supply of cocaine may be one of the contributing factors to its use, it is insufficient. The presumption required to substantiate this view is that drug users are not particular about which drugs they use, so that if marijuana and heroin are not available, they will switch to whatever drug is available--cocaine in this case. This assumption is not reasonable. Marijuana, heroin, and cocaine are not alike in their effects on users; nor are they alike in the manner in which they are ingested or in their addictive properties. The view that drug users’ choice of drugs is simply a function of supply overlooks these important differences. Besides, the argument is self-contradictory. If it were true, as stated by the arguer, that cocaine trafficking is both safer than the bulky marijuana and more profitable than heroin that has a small market, this fact alone would have motivated the drug traffickers to switch to cocaine. In this case, the government enforcement effort should not be held accountable for the rise in the use of cocaine.
In the second place, the arguer fails to provide the necessary information based on which we can evaluate the comprehensive effect of the government's action. The background of the incident is that the drug abuse has now become ever more serious a social problem than anytime in the past. And this is what motivated the government actions against drug trafficking in the first place. We, therefore, can reasonably assume that before the government took actions the abuse of all major popular drugs had been on the trend of increase, including the use of cocaine. The newspaper editorial, however, only mentions the observed increase in the use of cocaine while failing to provide any information to specify the current increase and that before the government strengthened its drug contraction efforts. We thus cannot compare the patterns of change in this aspect before and after the government actions in order to reach any valid conclusion about the impact of the government actions on the use of cocaine. If the trend of increase in cocaine abuse has been slowed down, or if the total amount of illegal drugs in the market has been significantly reduced, even though the absolute use of cocaine is still increasing, we would say that the government efforts in apprehending drug traffickers are somehow effective.
In conclusion, the arguer oversimplifies the cause-and-effect relationship between government's increased efforts and the observed increase in the illegal use of cocaine. To strengthen the argument, the arguer would have to provide evidence that the government's enforcement efforts have directly led to the increased supply and use of cocaine. To better evaluate the argument, we would need more information about the trend of increase in the use of cocaine and other drugs before and after the government's actions.
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