Vice President Biden employed several critical thinking elements while advising President Obama on the Afghanistan surge. Biden used the implications critical thinking element to consider the consequences to proposed courses of action. He also demonstrated the clarify concern critical thinking element while questioning the relationship in resourcing between Afghanistan and Pakistan. Furthermore, he used the assumptions critical thinking element to consider his and other advisor’s assumptions while advising the President. Biden viewed the Afghanistan surge decision though the means utilitarianism ethical lens while employing the previously mentioned critical thinking elements.
The Vice President used the implications critical thinking element
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The assumption critical thinking element places an emphasis on recognizing assumptions as they influence all aspects of the critical thinking model. Biden employed this element by disagreeing with an intelligence report that indicated al Qaeda and the Taliban were largely combined and if one was successful they both were. Furthermore, he challenged the intelligence data asserting it was based on assumptions. The Vice President disregarded the al Qaeda and Taliban linkage based on insufficient supporting information that concluded this was more than an assumption. In addition, Biden attempted to highlight intelligence capability utilization issues further supporting his means utilitarianism approach. Resources must be effectively managed and applied to ensure the ends are resourced appropriately. Biden displayed means utilitarianism and the assumption critical thinking element by questioning the use and accuracy of the intelligence that was informing the decision-making process. This is evident as he challenges intelligence that suggests al Qaeda and the Taliban were linked to the degree they share successes and failures. Not only did he question the validity of the information, but also capability utilization and how it informed decision-making. As a result, Biden effectively employed the assumptions critical thinking