The warcry of the opposition PRO party hawks is: “Larreta is Massa.” And so, as a theoretical exercise, we asked ChatGPT to submit the three candidates most likely to reach the presidency come December 10 to the Nolan Test.
ChatGPT estimated that it could answer the 20 questions of the Nolan Test on behalf of each of these candidates on the basis of their lifelong statements.
The test was created in 1969 by the libertarian United States politician David Nolan with five categories: progressive, conservative, liberal, totalitarian and centre. Instead of the classic linear positioning between right and left, Nolan constructed a bidimensional structure with two axles: economic freedom and personal freedom.
Apart from a position in the graph, the test also yields a linear percentage of the weight of the social and the economic in the ideology of the person, the degree of importance assigned to the collective and the degree of importance assigned to the social.
Each of the 20 questions has three alternative replies with a different degree of control of society which the government must apply to individual human action. These are: Freedom of Speech, Religion, Military Service, Sex, Drugs, Security, Discrimination, Immigration, Nation, Environment, Globalisation, Taxes, Retirees, Solidarity, Licences, Unions, Healthcare, Banking, Big Business and the Labour Market.
The result of this theoretical exercise effectively places Sergio Massa and Horacio Rodríguez Larreta in the centre of the graph but in the case of the Unión por la Patria candidate he is at the extreme limit of the middle ground with the totalitarian trend (statist from the US perspective) and in the case of the City Mayor at the extremes of the liberal centre.
Another difference between both is that Massa is in the bottom left-hand corner of the centre square (progressive) and Rodríguez Larreta in the upper right-hand corner of the centre (conservative), both of them in the most distant points which could be occupied by somebody sharing a centrist position. Patricia Bullrich is clearly placed to the right and in the middle of the conservative space and equally distant from the frontiers of the liberal and the totalitarian (populist).
There are dated words with the irritation of 2015 now replaced by fatigue (Milei) and finer shades of meaning (to explain their differences within coalitions). The Nolan Test demonstrates that it is not about finer shades of meaning: there is as much distance in the graph between Bullrich and Rodríguez Larreta as between the latter and Massa and as between Massa and Juan Grabois.
The Questions
FREEDOM OF SPEECH
Some individuals and media spread wrong views with dubious objectives.
The spreading of mistaken views aiming at manipulating and / or influencing the public opinion shall be forbidden.
Apologetic messages of hate and/or extreme views should be banned.
The Government should not censor any opinion in any case.
RELIGION:
The Church performs certain social tasks. Therefore...
The Government shall contribute to its financing, and take into consideration their views when passing laws.
Government and Church must be separate, but the Government may finance some of the social tasks undertaken by the Church (schools, asylums...)
The Church shall finance itself, and be on equal grounds with any other association.
MILITARY SERVICE
The defence of the country is the responsibility of those serving in the army.
Military service shall be compulsory as a way to contribute to common welfare and/or to better educate our youth.
Military service shall be voluntary. That is the best way to have a professional army prepared to defend our interests and commitments abroad.
Military service shall be voluntary in case an army exists, and if so, its nature should be limited to its most basic duties of defence.
SEX
Sex between consenting adults is a matter of individual privacy. Nonetheless...
Behaviours such as homosexuality, polygamy or prostitution should be banned or tightly controlled.
Prostitution should be banned or tightly controlled.
Laws should not interfere with sex between consenting adults, in no case.
DRUGS
Drugs are a tragedy for many families
The government should fight drug-trafficking with more resources and more effectively.
The use of some drugs currently forbidden shall be legal, although its distribution should be controlled.
Drugs should be legal, decriminalising its use and liberalising its distribution.
SECURITY
Preventive measures may lead to improved safety. However, in many cases, this collides with some individual rights such as the right to privacy.
Safety of all goes before the rights of one; The security forces should not see its role hindered because a criminal is covered by individual rights.
The laws and the judiciary should establish in which cases preventive measures go before certain individual rights.
The government should not violate any individual right to improve security.
DISCRIMINATION
In some institutions, groups or professions, there is a disparity between the number of men and women, or between different races or social groups.
Quota obligations are the best instrument to remedy historical situations of discrimination.
Integration subsidies or tax benefits to underrepresented groups are the best instrument to address discrimination.
Any imposition or benefit based on criteria of sex, race or social group, violates the principle of equality before the law, and should not be imposed by the Government.
IMMIGRATION
Borders are used to control immigration.
We must strongly limit the entry of new immigrants and/or expel those who do not integrate.
The Government shall regulate immigration to allow necessary immigrants to come in a legal way.
There should be no differences of rights based on the place of birth or one's nationality.
NATION
The modern state tends to be associated with the concept of a nation.
The Government shall promote patriotism and defend the national identity, culture and language.
The Government shall protect and / or promote the culture and language that characterises its nation.
The Government shall not intervene in matters as personal as identity or culture. Every citizen should have the freedom to use any language.
ENVIRONMENT
One of the greatest threats to civilisation is the deterioration of the environment.
Laws should force a cleaner environment by imposing strict limitations of pollutants.
Clean energies should be promoted through more subsidies to those who pollute less and more taxes to those who pollute the most.
There would be less pollution should clear responsibilities and well-defined property rights with respect to pollution be established.
GLOBALISATION
Imports may be limited by the Government through various instruments such as tariffs, prohibitions, or certain regulations.
The Government should limit imports from other countries to favour domestic producers.
The Government should limit imports from some Third World countries, as they use cheap labour.
The Government should not restrict international trade. It must be free and tariffs should be reduced or eliminated.
TAXES
Taxes are necessary to cover the Government expenditure.
The rich should pay more taxes to increase the benefits and services provided by the State.
Taxes should not go up. They must be at the level required to meet the expenses of the State.
Taxes should go down, even if that means cutting some benefits and services provided by the State.
RETIREES
Retirement funds guarantee a level of welfare for the elderly.
Retirement plans must be managed by the Government with a public system of mandatory contributions.
Retirement plans should be guaranteed by the Government, with some kind of mixed model that can combine public and private plans.
Retirement plans are a matter of individual planning and savings. The Government should not require mandatory contributions to a public system.
SOLIDARITY
The poor and needy depend on the solidarity of the rest of society.
The Government should be responsible for removing or reducing poverty and inequality in society.
The Government shall manage aid and adequate assistance to the needy, regardless of whether private charitable institutions may voluntarily supplement that.
Private charity should be the main channel for the solidarity of society.
LICENCES
Some professionals require a qualification to work.
Professional sectors should be regulated by law. The exercise of qualified professions should require the appropriate licences and permits granted in each case by the competent Government body.
Professional sectors should be regulated by independent bodies, such as professional associations. Qualified professionals should join them, as their supervision ensures the quality of their services.
Licences, permits and professional associations are unnecessary obstacles. The exercise of any profession should be free for anyone qualified.
UNIONS
Labour unions represent the interests of workers.
Labour unions are essential to protect the rights of workers. The Government shall provide them with funding and assign them special functions on labour laws.
Labour unions, as representatives of workers, should have special status on laws regulating labour but should not be funded by the Government.
Labour unions should be governed by the rules applicable to any other association, and no public funding or special functions shall be attributed to them.
HEALTHCARE
Medical coverage is a necessity for everyone eventually.
The Government should manage public medical centres paid by contributions to a mandatory public health insurance.
The Government should guarantee universal access to healthcare centres using some sort of public funding.
The government should not manage medical centres. Medical facilities should be private and citizens be free to hire the health insurance they wish.
BANKING
The Central Bank and the banking system, consisting of commercial banks, put the money into circulation.
Both the Central Bank and commercial banks should be public and meet social needs.
The Central Bank has a key role regulating the economy so it must be independent and supervise commercial banks.
The Central Bank should reduce its powers and commercial banks shall all be private.
BIG BUSINESS
Larger stores have certain competitive advantages versus small traditional shops.
Some big department stores have unfair competition practices. More stringent conditions of operation should be imposed on them, or force them to close.
Some advantages of big stores should be corrected by regulating certain matters, such as restricting their opening times and days, or limiting the maximum discount they can apply.
Big stores are businesses like any other. They are entitled to compete freely in the market, with no restrictions on their opening hours or prices.
LABOUR MARKET
Labour contracts bind employers and employees on their obligations.
Labour laws should impose more restrictions on firing people and further limit precarious employment by ensuring greater worker protection.
Labour laws should always maintain a special protection to workers, protecting them against abusive firing and precarious employment.
Employment contracts should enjoy freedom of clauses between parties. Laws should not interfere in purely contractual matters, such as duration or termination causes.
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