According to a recent study by the National Academy

Question

According to a recent study by the National Academy of Public Administration, postal patrons are regularly affronted by out-of-order stamp vending machines, branch post office lobbies locked at night, and 33-cent letters that take as long to get there as 8-cent letters did long ago.

Which of the following, if true, would weaken the implication of one of the writer’s observations

A. Most out-of-order vending machines are located in rundown neighbourhoods.

B. Late-night vandalism has plagued post offices nationwide.

C. Although postage rates have risen, the cost of first class mail is still cheaper in the United States than anywhere else.

D. As a public corporation, the Postal Service has increased its capital assets by $3 billion.

E. When stamps cost 8 cents, most letters reached their destination within 24 hours.

AtharvaBansal · Answer

what makes E the answer...plz explain in detail

EducationAisle · Answer

Hi Atharva, let's analyze this.

Question: Which of the following, if true, would weaken the implication of "one of the writer’s observations".

Implication: postal patrons are affronted/unhappy about...

One of the writer’s observations: 33-cent letters that take as long to get there as 8-cent letters did long ago

Option E: When stamps cost 8 cents, most letters reached their destination within 24 hours.

Reaching their destination within 24 hours is great, isn't it? In other words, 33-cent letters reach their destination within 24 hours. That is really good and if this is the case, postal patrons not NOT have a reason to be affronted/unhappy about this particular service.

Hence, E weakens the implication of this observation of the writer.

namanqqkm · Answer

why are we assuming 24 hr is good and when 8 cents letters took 24hr dont you think 33 cents should take less than 24 hrs maybe 12 hrs, why not? this question is not clear in setting the rules according to me. Affronted means something thats's disturbing you from reaching your goal, then option B, says late nights plagued post offices nationwide and thats the reason why the post offices are locked throughout the night. now makes sense and weaken the implication

egmat · Answer

Hi namanqqkm, 
Great questions! Let me address both your concerns.

Understanding the Core Complaint: 
The argument's third observation implies: "We pay  4x more  for stamps, but delivery is just as  SLOW  as before."

The Key Insight:  
The complaint works  only if  we assume the old 8-cent delivery was  slow . That's why "taking as long" sounds like a valid complaint.

What Choice E Does: 
E tells us:  8-cent letters reached their destination within 24 hours .

24 hours = FAST delivery!

So if today's  33-cent  letters also arrive in ~ 24 hours , that's  still fast service . The phrase "as long to get there" no longer sounds like a complaint—you're still getting  quick  delivery.

Addressing Your "Shouldn't 33 cents = 12 hours?" Logic: 
I see where you're coming from, but  be careful about bringing in outside assumptions . The GMAT argument doesn't claim "higher price  should  mean proportionally faster service."

The argument  only  implies: current service is  slow .

Choice E proves: service was fast THEN, and is  still fast  NOW.
 
That's sufficient to  weaken  the complaint.

Why Not B? 
B explains  WHY  lobbies are locked (vandalism). But here's the thing:

- Lobbies are  STILL  locked
- Customers are  STILL  annoyed

An explanation doesn't weaken unless it removes the negative outcome.

To truly weaken that observation, you'd need something like: "Most customers  prefer  locked lobbies for safety reasons."  That  would eliminate the "affront."

B just tells us the  reason  for the problem, it doesn't make the problem disappear.

Answer: E

Hope this creates clarity! The key takeaway: always identify  what exactly  the argument is claiming before evaluating answer choices.

According to a recent study by the National Academy

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