Logic Writing Assignment #8

Following the instructions for Writing Assignment #7, diagram the following complex argument, and both identify and evaluate each of the simple arguments found in it.

(1) Global political instability will lead to a significant rise in inflation. (2) First, if all large increases in the price of oil are events followed by a significant increase in inflation, and the recent sharp increases in the price of oil were caused by global political instability, then global political instability will lead to a significant rise in inflation. (3) Second, the recent sharp increases in the price of oil were caused by global political instability. (4) This is because this is the only potential cause present every time the price of oil didn’t increase. (5) Also, like oil, natural gas, coal, copper, diamonds, and rubber are all limited resources found in unstable parts of the world, whose prices recently increased significantly. (6) And their price increases were caused by political instability. (7) Third, all large increases in the price of oil are events followed by a significant increase in inflation. (8) For all large increases in the price of products crucial for economic activity are events followed by a significant increase in inflation, (9) and all large increases in the price of products crucial for economic activity are large increases in the price of oil. (10) The former follows from a study of 1000 randomly selected cases of large increases in the price of products crucial for economic activity, which showed that all these cases were followed by a significant increase in inflation.