PrepTest 115, Section 2, Question 9
Claude: To introduce greater public accountability into French(56 more words not shown)
Which one of the following(11 more words not shown)
- AThe mechanics of(12 more words not shown)
- BSome of the(18 more words not shown)
- CForeign proponents and(15 more words not shown)
- DThe general public(21 more words not shown)
- EForeign governments friendly(19 more words not shown)
Reading the argument
Voting for a candidate doesn't mean endorsing every policy that candidate supports. A voter might prefer the candidate's economic ideas and dislike the candidate's foreign policy. So I can see Claude's concern about treating an election result as a clear instruction on a specific issue.
Claude wants referenda: direct public votes on major foreign-policy questions. Those votes would make the public's position on each issue clearer. But would clearer public control lead to good decisions? People could have strong views without understanding the decisions' consequences.
That's Lorraine's objection. She says the public is unwilling or unable to become informed, unlike people in government, and predicts disaster if the public makes these decisions directly. Her concern makes sense, but we should still examine the comparison and the prediction.
What we’re looking for
The question asks for Claude's strongest reply. My first thought would be to question whether government decision makers are really better informed. If they aren't, moving decisions to the public may not be the step down Lorraine imagines. That's one possible route; an answer could also give a different reason to doubt her forecast.
Working the answers
- A
Being able to organize and count a vote doesn't establish that voters will make informed choices. Lorraine's objection concerns their understanding of the issues, not the mechanics of holding a referendum. Easier administration leaves that objection in place.
- B
Information that can't safely be made public gives us a reason the public might have difficulty becoming informed. That supports Lorraine's concern rather than answering it. Claude needs to show why public decision making needn't produce the disaster she predicts.
- C
Attempts to influence voters don't show that voters will become better informed or make good decisions. Those attempts could even create another concern about the proposed system. We aren't told whether the persuasion would be accurate or successful, so C certainly doesn't establish the reply Claude needs.
- DCorrect
This takes a different route from questioning government officials' expertise. It explains why the public currently has little desire to become informed: people have little or no influence over the decisions.
Give them a meaningful vote, and that reason for staying uninformed changes. Someone who previously thought learning about a distant dispute served no purpose may now want to understand it before making a decision. Lorraine treats the public's current lack of interest as a reason to predict future failure, but the reform itself could change that interest.
D doesn't guarantee wise votes. It gives Claude a concrete reason to challenge the assumption that people's present behavior will continue after they receive more power.
- E
This adds a potential cost of referenda: friendly governments might withhold information because a public debate could expose it. That could make informed policy harder to achieve. It helps Lorraine's case against the proposal instead of undermining her objection.
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