This is a book that is really short, less than 100 pages, the page that was not even a full size to start. But it was worth reading. Simply stated, the author, a professor of philosophy at Princeton who previously wrote a popular book called On the bullshit roundly rejects the pursuit of economic equality as morally valid goal. He characterizes the pursuit as alienating a person of yourself, by defining …show more content…
Frankfurt also discussed the efforts to justify economic equality is based on the theory of diminishing marginal utility which postulates that the marginal value of each additional dollar to someone who has less wealthy than those who have a great need. First, he noted, that the argument is really argument for a basic level of adequacy, not the main equality. After the two men have a sufficient number, and what is being compared is a desire of two people 'to buy discretionary items, the proposition is not credible. Moving the marginal utility of income level that uses frequent flyer to upgrade to first class income levels using a private jet may be great, because it allows a person to pass through TSA nightmares and spares one need not wait long at the …show more content…
He cleverly offers an example of a series of things - products, services and content. Think about collecting (eg, comic books, baseball cards, first edition). Or watching the TV series, such as Breaking Bad or Sopranos: how important is to see the last episode vs. one in the middle? Or a value greater than attend the championship game at the end of the season. In any case, the final purchase or experience in the series may be the most desirable, not least appreciated. Life can not be reduced to a simple formula with linear slopes. Just because the marginal utility can be observed in the back or in the population as a whole does not mean it can be predicted with accuracy in terms of the future or a specific individual. See the ecological fallacy.
On Inequality is also the fact, rather than appointed by the author, of different life cycles of consumption, work and recreation. One person can work extra hard in high school, college, and its prime working years, and can save aggressively. with the aim of consolidating large blocks of leisure and retirement savings. Others may choose to enjoy a holiday spread over their entire previous period and found himself working at a later date to make up for it. Think of the famous marshmallow experiment. But how does one define fair, at any point along the timeline of these two lives, what equality between