Question

read the passages and then choose the best answer to the question. answer the question on the basis of what is stated or implied in the passage.

passage

passage 1
there is a common belief that increasing taxes will slow any economy. if money is taken out of the pockets of citizens, those citizens will have less money to spend as consumers; when consumers spend less, the decreased demand for products drives down the production of goods, and the economy slows. but the issue of increasing taxes really hinges on which particular group of citizens is taxed more, i believe it would actually be best to increase taxes, but only for the very wealthy. even if the extremely rich are taxed at a higher rate, they will still have money to spend on consumer goods, and thus will maintain economic growth—which is good for everybody.

passage 2
increasing taxes on anyone, regardless of their wealth, is always destructive to an economy. it is clear to me that the rich drive the economy: they provide jobs, invest in new technologies, and spend more dollars on consumable products. the activities of the rich increase the amount of money circulating in the system, which ultimately allows others to get more of it in their pockets. taking an exorbitant amount of money from the wealthiest people and giving it to the government does not put money back on the streets to be used for goods, or perhaps to start ones own small business. less money in the government treasury means more money can be used by citizens to generate even more money.

question
the authors of both passages probably would agree that

• certain groups of people should start paying higher taxes
• tax increases have a direct effect on the economy
• new technologies help only those who invent them
• spending money does not help the economy very much

Explanation:

1. Analyze Option 1: Passage 1 says to tax the very wealthy more, but Passage 2 argues against increasing taxes on anyone. So they don't agree on "certain groups should pay higher taxes".
2. Analyze Option 2: Passage 1 states increasing taxes (on some) or not (on others) affects the economy; Passage 2 says increasing taxes on anyone is destructive (so also acknowledges tax increases affect the economy). So both agree tax increases have a direct effect on the economy.
3. Analyze Option 3: Passage 2 says the rich invest in new tech which helps the economy (implying it helps others), so this is incorrect.
4. Analyze Option 4: Both passages talk about how spending (or lack of) affects the economy, so they don't agree that spending doesn't help the economy.

Answer:

B. tax increases have a direct effect on the economy