Question 1163805
<pre>
The others did not see your earliest post.  This is what you posted
that you had done:
</pre><font color="red">
18 - (x+3) - 2x = 4 + (x-5)
18 - x +3 - 2x = 4 + x-5              <---THIS STEP IS WRONG!!!!!)
-x - 2x +18 + 3 = 4 + x-5
-3x +21 = 4 + x-5
-3x - x + 21 - 21 = x - x + 4 -5 -21
4x = -22
x = -5.5</font>
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<pre>Your error was in removing parentheses when there is a minus sign preceding
the parentheses.

You changed  - (x+3) to -x+3 when you should have changed it to -x-3.

BOTH SIGNS are changed when removing the parentheses, not just the first
one.

When an expression in parentheses is preceded by a minus or negative sign,
it is the same as if you were distributing -1 into the parentheses.

So when you see -(x+3), consider it to be 

                -1(x+3)

then distribute like this

               (-1)(x)+(-1)(3)

then

                -x + (-3)

and finally

                -x - 3

Now do the problem again, using -x - 3, not what you had.      

Edwin</pre>