The country of baurisia has, until now, been self-sufficient in both grain and meat. however, with growing prosperity in baurisia has come a steadily increasing per capita consumption of meat, and it takes several pounds of grain to produce one pound of meat. therefore, since per capita income in baurisia is almost certain to rise further but increases in domestic grain production are highly unlikely, baurisia is soon likely to become an importer of grain. which of the following, if true, most seriously weakens the argument? a) when people increase their consumption of meat, they also tend to increase their consumption of grain. b) the per capita consumption of meat in baurisia is roughly the same accross all income levels. c) per capita consumption of meat has not increased substantially in recent years in those countries from which baurisia is likely to import meat. d) it is more economical for baurisians to import meat than grain. e) during baurisia's years of growing prosperity, the country's population has remained relatively stable.

Selected information about income statement accounts for the reed company is presented below (the company's fiscal year ends on december 31): 2018 2017sales $ 4,400,000 $ 3,500,000cost of goods sold 2,860,000 2,000,000administrative expenses 800,000 675,000selling expenses 360,000 312,000interest revenue 150,000 140,000interest expense 200,000 200,000loss on sale of assets of discontinued component 50,000 —on july 1, 2018, the company adopted a plan to discontinue a division that qualifies as a component of an entity as defined by gaap. the assets of the component were sold on september 30, 2018, for $50,000 less than their book value. results of operations for the component (included in the above account balances) were as follows: 1/1/18-9/30/18 2017 sales $ 400,000 $ 500,000 cost of goods sold (290,000 ) (320,000 )administrative expenses (50,000 ) (40,000 )selling expenses (20,000 ) (30,000 )operating income before taxes $ 40,000 $ 110,000 in addition to the account balances above, several events occurred during 2018 that have not yet been reflected in the above accounts: a fire caused $50,000 in uninsured damages to the main office building. the fire was considered to be an infrequent but not unusual event. inventory that had cost $40,000 had become obsolete because a competitor introduced a better product. the inventory was sold as scrap for $5,000.income taxes have not yet been recorded. required: prepare a multiple-step income statement for the reed company for 2018, showing 2017 information in comparative format, including income taxes computed at 40% and eps disclosures assuming 300,000 shares of common stock. (amounts to be deducted should be indicated with a minus sign. round eps answers to 2 decimal places.)