READING PASSGAES 63

Passage 1 (1/63).........................................................................................................................3 Passage 2 (2/63).........................................................................................................................5 Passage 3 (3/63).........................................................................................................................7 Passage 4 (4/63).........................................................................................................................9 Passage 5 (5/63).......................................................................................................................12 Passage 6 (6/63).......................................................................................................................14 Passage 7 (7/63).......................................................................................................................17 Passage 8 (8/63).......................................................................................................................19 Passage 9 (9/63).......................................................................................................................22 Passage 10 (10/63)...................................................................................................................24 Passage 11 (11/63)...................................................................................................................27 Passage 12 (12/63)...................................................................................................................29 Passage 13 (13/63)...................................................................................................................32 Passage 14 (14/63)...................................................................................................................35 Passage 15 (15/63)...................................................................................................................37 Passage 16 (16/63)...................................................................................................................40 Passage 17 (17/63)...................................................................................................................42 Passage 18 (18/63)...................................................................................................................45 Passage 19 (19/63)...................................................................................................................47 Passage 20 (20/63)...................................................................................................................50 Passage 21 (21/63)...................................................................................................................52 Passage 22 (22/63)...................................................................................................................55 Passage 23 (23/63)...................................................................................................................58 Passage 24 (24/63)...................................................................................................................60 Passage 25 (25/63)...................................................................................................................62 Passage 26 (26/63)...................................................................................................................64 Passage 27 (27/63)...................................................................................................................67 Passage 28 (28/63)...................................................................................................................69 Passage 29 (29/63)...................................................................................................................71 Passage 30 (30/63)...................................................................................................................74 Passage 31 (31/63)...................................................................................................................76 Passage 32 (32/63)...................................................................................................................79 Passage 33 (33/63)...................................................................................................................81 Passage 34 (34/63)...................................................................................................................83 Passage 35 (35/63)...................................................................................................................85 Passage 36 (36/63)...................................................................................................................88 Passage 37 (37/63)...................................................................................................................90 Passage 38 (38/63)...................................................................................................................92 Passage 39 (39/63)...................................................................................................................94 Passage 40 (40/63)...................................................................................................................95 Passage 41 (41/63)...................................................................................................................98 Passage 42 (42/63).................................................................................................................100 Passage 43 (43/63).................................................................................................................102 Passage 44 (44/63).................................................................................................................104 Passage 45 (45/63).................................................................................................................107 Passage 46 (46/63).................................................................................................................109 Passage 47 (47/63).................................................................................................................110 Passage 48 (48/63).................................................................................................................112 Passage 49 (49/63).................................................................................................................114 Passage 50 (50/63).................................................................................................................117 Passage 51 (51/63).................................................................................................................119 Passage 52 (52/63).................................................................................................................121 Passage 53 (53/63).................................................................................................................123 Passage 54 (54/63).................................................................................................................125 Passage 55 (55/63).................................................................................................................127 Passage 56 (56/63).................................................................................................................129 Passage 57 (57/63).................................................................................................................131 Passage 58 (58/63).................................................................................................................133 Passage 59 (59/63).................................................................................................................134 Passage 60 (60/63).................................................................................................................136 Passage 61 (61/63).................................................................................................................138 Passage 62 (62/63).................................................................................................................139 Passage 63 (63/63).................................................................................................................141 63 READING PASSAGES Passage 1 (1/63) (This passage was written in 1978.) Recent years have brought minority-owned businesses in the United States unprecedented opportunities—as well as new and significant risks. Civil rights activists have long argued that one of the principal reasons why Blacks, Hispanics, and other minority groups have difficulty establishing themselves in business is that they lack access to the sizable orders and subcontracts that are generated by large companies. Now Congress, in apparent agreement, has required by law that businesses awarded federal contracts of more than $500,000 do their best to find minority subcontractors and record their efforts to do so on forms filed with the government. Indeed, some federal and local agencies have gone so far as to set specific percentage goals for apportioning parts of public works contracts to minority enterprises. Corporate response appears to have been substantial. According to figures collected in 1977, the total of corporate contracts with minority businesses rose from $77 million in 1972 to $1.1 billion in 1977. The projected total of corporate contracts with minority businesses for the early 1980’s is estimated to be over 53 billion per year with no letup anticipated in the next decade. Promising as it is for minority businesses, this increased patronage poses dangers for them, too. First, minority firms risk expanding too fast and overextending themselves financially, since most are small concerns and, unlike large businesses, they often need to make substantial investments in new plants, staff, equipment, and the like in order to perform work subcontracted to them. If, thereafter, their subcontracts are for some reason reduced, such firms can face potentially crippling fixed expenses. The world of corporate purchasing can be frustrating for small entrepreneurs who get requests for elaborate formal estimates and bids. Both consume valuable time and resources, and a small company’s efforts must soon result in orders, or both the morale and the financial health of the business will suffer. A second risk is that White-owned companies may seek to cash in on the increasing apportionments through formation of joint ventures with minority-owned concerns. Of course, in many instances there are legitimate reasons for joint ventures; clearly, White and minority enterprises can team up to acquire business that neither could acquire alone. But civil rights groups and minority business owners have complained to Congress about minorities being set up as “fronts” with White backing, rather than being accepted as full partners in legitimate joint ventures. Third, a minority enterprise that secures the business of one large corporate customer often runs the danger of becoming—and remaining—dependent. Even in the best of circumstances, fierce competition from larger, more established companies makes it difficult for small concerns to broaden their customer bases: when such firms have nearly guaranteed orders from a single corporate benefactor, they may truly have to struggle against complacency arising from their current success. 1. The primary purpose of the passage is to (A) present a commonplace idea and its inaccuracies (B) describe a situation and its potential drawbacks (C) propose a temporary solution to a problem (D) analyze a frequent source of disagreement (E) explore the implications of a finding 2. The passage supplies information that would answer which of the following questions? (A) What federal agencies have set percentage goals for the use of minority-owned businesses in public works contracts? (B) To which government agencies must businesses awarded federal contracts report their efforts to find minority subcontractors? (C) How widespread is the use of minority-owned concerns as “fronts” by White backers seeking to obtain subcontracts? (D) How many more minority-owned businesses were there in 1977 than in 1972? (E) What is one set of conditions under which a small business might find itself financially overextended? 3. According to the passage, civil rights activists maintain that one disadvantage under which minority-owned businesses have traditionally had to labor is that they have (A) been especially vulnerable to governmental mismanagement of the economy (B) been denied bank loans at rates comparable to those afforded larger competitors (C) not had sufficient opportunity to secure business created by large corporations (D) not been able to advertise in those media that reach large numbers of potential customers (E) not had adequate representation in the centers of government power 4. The passage suggests that the failure of a large business to have its bids for subcontracts result quickly in orders might cause it to (A) experience frustration but not serious financial harm (B) face potentially crippling fixed expenses (C) have to record its efforts on forms filed with the government (D) increase its spending with minority subcontractors (E) revise its procedure for making bids for federal contracts and subcontracts 5. The author implies that a minority-owned concern that does the greater part of its business with one large corporate customer should (A) avoid competition with larger, more established concerns by not expanding (B) concentrate on securing even more business from that corporation (C) try to expand its customer base to avoid becoming dependent on the corporation (D) pass on some of the work to be done for the corporation to other minority-owned concerns (E) use its influence with the corporation to promote subcontracting with other minority concerns 6. It can be inferred from the passage that, compared with the requirements of law, the percentage goals set by “some federal and local agencies” (lines 14-15) are (A) more popular with large corporations (B) more specific (C) less controversial (D) less expensive to enforce (E) easier to comply with 7. Which of the following, if true, would most weaken the author’s assertion that, in the 1970’s, corporate response to federal requirements (lines 18-19) was substantial (A) Corporate contracts with minority-owned businesses totaled $2 billion in 1979. (B) Between 1970 and 1972, corporate contracts with minority-owned businesses declined by 25 percent. (C) The figures collected in 1977 underrepresented the extent of corporate contracts with minority-owned businesses. (D) The estimate of corporate spending with minority-owned businesses in 1980 is approximately $10 million too high. (E) The $1.1 billion represented the same percentage of total corporate spending in 1977 as did $77 million in 1972. 8. The author would most likely agree with which of the following statements about corporate response to working with minority subcontractors? (A) Annoyed by the proliferation of “front” organizations, corporations are likely to reduce their efforts to work with minority-owned subcontractors in the near future. (B) Although corporations showed considerable interest in working with minority businesses in the 1970’s, their aversion to government paperwork made them reluctant to pursue many government contracts. (C) The significant response of corporations in the 1970’s is likely to be sustained and conceivably be increased throughout the 1980’s. (D) Although corporations are eager to cooperate with minority-owned businesses, a shortage of capital in the 1970’s made substantial response impossible. (E) The enormous corporate response has all but eliminated the dangers of over-expansion that used to plague small minority-owned businesses. Passage 2 (2/63) Woodrow Wilson was referring to the liberal idea of the economic market when he said that the free enterprise system is the most efficient economic system. Maximum freedom means maximum productiveness; our “openness” is to be the measure of our stability. Fascination with this ideal has made Americans defy the “Old World” categories of settled possessiveness versus unsettling deprivation, the cupidity of retention versus the cupidity of seizure, a “status quo” defended or attacked. The United States, it was believed, had no status quo ante. Our only “station” was the turning of a stationary wheel, spinning faster and faster. We did not base our system on property but opportunity—which meant we based it not on stability but on mobility. The more things changed, that is, the more rapidly the wheel turned, the steadier we would be. The conventional picture of class politics is composed of the Haves, who want a stability to keep what they have, and the Have-Nots, who want a touch of instability and change in which to scramble for the things they have not. But Americans imagined a condition in which speculators, self-makers, runners are always using the new opportunities given by our land. These economic leaders (front-runners) would thus be mainly agents of change. The nonstarters were considered the ones who wanted stability, a strong referee to give them some position in the race, a regulative hand to calm manic speculation; an authority that can call things to a halt, begin ... - tailieumienphi.vn