principle question

[gplaya123]

Doesn't always the principle need to connect premise and conclusion?

I feel like it does not...

For example... like prep 66 LR4 #2...
I feel like C isn't the adequate answer please help!

[ohthatpatrick]

Yeah, what you're grappling with is the gap between what Principle-Support HAS to be (which is just a decent Strengthen answer) and what it usually IS (which is a Sufficient Assumption type conditional).

The vast majority of the time, the correct answer to Principle-Support is a conditional idea that essentially works like
PREM --> CONC

But ... all the question stem says is that the correct answer will most help to justify the argument. That is synonymous with, "Which answer, if true, most strengthens the argument?"

So we have to be careful demanding that the correct answer acts like it usually does.

Here (C) definitely strengthens. Our correct answer MUST deal with 'regulation', since that is the focus of our conclusion and the argument has told us nothing about 'regulation'.

(C) tells us that 'regulation' does something to address our problem: it helps people filter between good and bad info.

(A) tells us something that sounds like a negative about 'regulation', so that won't help us strengthen the conclusion's endorsement.

(B) tells us something that sounds like regulation will NOT help the problem.

(D) can be eliminated purely from the standpoint of it has nothing to do with 'regulation'.

(E) contradicts the thrust of the argument, which is advocating for regulated information (whereas this answer suggests that unregulated is usually more desirable).

Did you like another answer more than (C) or were you just surprised by (C)'s atypical format?

Check out a similar Principle-Support question:
PT37 S2 22