Outsourcing is the practice of obtaining from independent suppliers products or services that a company previously provided for itself. Some analysts maintain that since the goal of any company is to maximize its profit, a company should outsource a product or service if an independent supplier can provide it at a lower cost. This very goal, however, could require a company to make the opposite decision. Companies that outsource generally dismantle some of their capabilities. In so doing, they might make themselves totally dependent on just a few outside suppliers. Since the outsourcing companies do not control the priorities of those suppliers, the continuity of supply and thus of their own operations could be threatened. Thus, a companys long-term profitability might be better protected by not outsourcing.
In the argument given, the two boldfaced portions play which of the following roles?
A. The first presents a generalization whose accuracy the argument calls into question; the second presents that generalization in a revised version that the argument concludes is correct.
B. The first presents a generalization that the argument criticizes as too sweeping; the second identifies potential exceptions to that generalization.
C. The first is a general claim whose implications are at issue in the argument; the second is a position concerning those implications that is criticized in the argument.
D. The first is a general claim whose implications are at issue in the argument; the second is a statement of the main conclusion of the argument.
E. The first is a general principle that the argument seeks to show is unsound; the second is the main criticism of that principle raised inthe argument.
In the argument given, the two boldfaced portions play which of the following roles?
A. The first presents a generalization whose accuracy the argument calls into question; the second presents that generalization in a revised version that the argument concludes is correct.
B. The first presents a generalization that the argument criticizes as too sweeping; the second identifies potential exceptions to that generalization.
C. The first is a general claim whose implications are at issue in the argument; the second is a position concerning those implications that is criticized in the argument.
D. The first is a general claim whose implications are at issue in the argument; the second is a statement of the main conclusion of the argument.
E. The first is a general principle that the argument seeks to show is unsound; the second is the main criticism of that principle raised inthe argument.