What we stand for: Quasi-Rawlsian ethics | 96 comments (96 topical, 0 editorial, 0 hidden)

Re: What we stand for: Quasi-Rawlsian ethics (4.00 / 5)

You are touching a different subject than the one I had in mind.
Rawlsian consensus is the other main chapter of his body of work -I was writing about ethics and in particular the idea that one's position in society should no be taken into account, and that improving the situation of the least favoured should be a major yardstick.

And yes you have a point with your reserves about the Rawlsian consensus, although in that case I think the main problem is something else: Republicans have thrown out of the debate those who argued that government was not always the problem through 50 years of propaganda. They were not thrown out because they did not want to take part in a reasonable discussion. They certainly did not exclude themselves.

It's more an Overton window problem, with Obama not willing to try to move it. Actually, Republicans are out of the Rawlsian consensus (they will block ANYTHING so they probably are the antithesis of the Rawlsian consensus), but they occupy most of the Overton window.

Earth provides enough to satisfy every man's need, but not every man's greed. Gandhi

by Cyrille (cyrillev domain yahoo.fr) on Fri Oct 1st, 2010 at 05:03:52 AM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: What we stand for: Quasi-Rawlsian ethics (none / 1)

It's more an Overton window problem, with Obama not willing to try to move it.

If I take Nonpartisan's intent correctly, that may be because Obama sees the banksters as part of the consensus. They are certainly more than willing to work with him, even if that really involves him working for them, in practice.

"It is not necessary to have hope in order to persevere."

by ARGeezer (ARGeezer a in a circle eurotrib daught com) on Fri Oct 1st, 2010 at 03:19:39 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: What we stand for: Quasi-Rawlsian ethics (none / 1)

I was writing about ethics...

But ethics are specific to the society. The first three search results for the word "ethics" via google bring up the statement that ethics are synonomous with morality or mores. Mores is, ultimately, the customary behavior of a people.

"It is not necessary to have hope in order to persevere."

by ARGeezer (ARGeezer a in a circle eurotrib daught com) on Sat Oct 2nd, 2010 at 08:21:41 PM EST
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Re: What we stand for: Quasi-Rawlsian ethics (none / 1)

But that is a mistake.

Just like legality and legitimacy are not the same thing, ethics and morality are not the same thing.

By laying out pros and cons we risk inducing people to join the debate, and losing control of a process that only we fully understand. - Alan Greenspan

by Carrie (migeru at eurotrib dot com) on Sat Oct 2nd, 2010 at 09:29:13 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: What we stand for: Quasi-Rawlsian ethics (4.00 / 2)

But like legitimacy, ethics depend on the society you are in and, particularly, the constraints it faces. It is clearly unethical to leave malformed newborns to die of exposure in a modern industrial state - or even in a premodern state with relatively strong social safety nets. But if you're a subsistence farmer in a premodern state with no support for handling handicapped children, and you're only barely surviving as it is, then it's a lot more of a grey area.

- Jake

Friends come and go. Enemies accumulate.

by JakeS (JangoSierra 'at' gmail 'dot' com) on Sun Oct 3rd, 2010 at 06:01:42 AM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: What we stand for: Quasi-Rawlsian ethics (4.00 / 3)

Perhaps I should have elaborated. Just because ethics and morality are often taken as being synonymous does not mean that they are. My point was that, like mores, ethics is specific to the culture, however much some ethicists might want to make them universal.

"It is not necessary to have hope in order to persevere."

by ARGeezer (ARGeezer a in a circle eurotrib daught com) on Sun Oct 3rd, 2010 at 11:42:18 AM EST
[ Parent ]

What we stand for: Quasi-Rawlsian ethics | 96 comments (96 topical, 0 editorial, 0 hidden)

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