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Differences with libertarianism
they do not have a good theory of redistributive justice. Rawls disagree with the fact that because, the result of juste procedures are fair, even if there are huge inequalities.
A good theory of justice for Rawls should
say something over a right social share of societal justice
Rawls principal publication
A theory of justice 1971
Rawls disagree with intuitionalism
he thinks that meritocrat ethics focuses too much on external initial ressources.
But fair society should also focus on internal.
According to rawls a fair society must neutralize
The effect of internal initial ressources.
Meritocratic justice is not enough
The proportion to make efforts is also due to social family circumstances
natural lottery = not unfair but we don’t deserve our talents
What is unfair for rawls
what institutions do with thos inequalities —> need to compensate those who lost at the natural lottery.
Rawls argues that we should use the internal ressources of the most talented to benefit to the less talented.
The original positions
hypothetical scenario used to establish principles of justice through a thought experiment. Participants in the original position are placed behind a "veil of ignorance."
The veil of ignorance
They do not know:
Their social status, class, wealth, or income.
Their natural abilities, talents, or disabilities.
Their gender, race, religion, or conception of the good life.
This ensures impartiality, as no one can tailor principles to their advantage.
Participants are rational and self-interested. They aim to secure the best possible outcomes for themselves, knowing they could end up in any social position.
Rawls argues that rational participants would choose two key principles of justice:
Equal Basic Liberties
Difference Principle
Difference Principle
Second Principles b of Rawls
Social and economic inequalities are justified only if they benefit the least advantaged members of society and are attached to positions open to all under conditions of fair equality of opportunity.
The principles of Rawls
Basic Rights and liberties
Social and Economic Inequalities
a. Fair Equality of Opportunity
b. Difference Principle
Income and wealth
Basic Rights and liberties
"Each person is to have an equal right to the most extensive total system of equal basic liberties compatible with a similar system of liberty for all."
This principle ensures equal basic rights and freedoms (e.g., freedom of speech, voting rights) for all individuals. These liberties cannot be traded or compromised for social or economic gains.
These are fundamental. But not absolute = there is exception
Three broad categories of rights and liberties
Personal liberties
Political liberties
Procedural liberties = Rule of law
Power and prerogatives and opportunities for acces to positions and offices.
Second principles of Rawls= social and economic inequalities are to be arranged.
inequalities can be just = priority to principle 1
a. Fair equality of opportunity
b. to the greatest benefit to the least-advantaged = difference principles
To be really free you need
Access to wealth and income, it is fundamental to Rawls
absent in libertarianism
Communism is different from liberal egalitarianism
because we do not need to reach the perfect equality of income.
—> because need incentives to make efforts.
We want the most talented to use their talent to make the economy grow.
Objection of the levelling down
Equality for its own sake can lead to undesirable outcomes: Levelling down may make everyone equal, but it often does so by making people worse off overall.
No benefit to anyone: If equality is achieved by making the better-off worse off without improving the situation of the worse-off, it does not benefit anyone.
not imply the difference principle because not everyone has the same income
Rawls Compensation ??
Receiving and giving
he is ambiguous about it —> he says that it is mediated by the state institutions.
Who are the minimin in the maximin? The worse least-advantaged ?
FREEMAN = the economically least advantaged = the poorest
2 ways of measuring poverty in economics
Absolute poverty
= When people lack the basic necessities for survival.
Relative poverty
= level of life worse than the general standard of living —> struggle to live a normal life and to participate in ordinary economic, social and cultural activities.
The social bases of self-respect.
One of the social primary good.
How others and social institutions treats you.
—> social institutions provide citizens social recognition
The social bases of self respect are covered partially by 3 principles
opportunities for acces to positions and offices. ( 2A)
For all (1)
Income equality // Sandel dignity of work.
Rawls theory is not the same as utilitarianism.
utility =/ social primary goods/
Social primary goods inclue income but also social basic of self respect / opportunities / basic rights and liberties.
Rawls is a liberal , libertarian = he is against utilitarianism.
Maximin = witouth first principles we should force people to work = violation of free choices.
Why Rawls is against utilitarianism
Because principle 1. —> Utilitarianism would justify the sacrifice of rights and liberties to maximize the aggregate welfare.
Critics of Rawls
He leaves too little space to individuals choices.
Rawls go too far by saying that everything is a matter of circumstances and not choices ( dworkin)
Dworkin
He says that theres not only endowment-insensitives but also choice-insensitives.
We should distinguish “ brute luck” and “option luck”
Brute luck and option luck
Dworkin = We should have compensations for inequalities only for brute bad luck.
Limitarianism
Robeyns = Radical version of liberal-egalitarianism.
Rijkdom —> Maximizing the minimun = we should tax more the rich.
No one should have more than 10 mil. = political limit. ( non ideal society) / ethical limit (in a ideal society )
2 arguments of Robeyns
the democratic argument
Large economic inequalities and the concentration of wealth threaten a central ideal of democracies. everyone should be able to exercise equal influences in political outcomes by universal suffrages.
Unmet urgent needs
Our planet is characterized by extreme global poverty.
for the incentives = she get back to rawls saying that we should adapt taxation system.
For opening borders
Veil of ignorance, dont know where you born. = brute bad luck
underestimation on how much freedom of movements is essential
equal opportunities
difference principle to individual societies
In The Law of Peoples, Rawls recognizes basic human rights as universal.
Against opening boarders
Rawls theory applied to a close society
In the Law of people - Rawls = The unmet urgent needs , need to be looked at a global level. — we should get to a global maximin.
Rawls = people would adopt institutions that are mirroring the political context…
