II. The comparison and contrast among Utilitarianism, Libertarianism, Moral Imperative, and Virtue Ethics
Utilitarianism has its strengths. Firstly, the utilitarian philosophy recognizes that we all like pleasure and dislike pain. This has also become the basis of moral and political life. That is, maximizing utility is a principle not only for individuals but also for legislators. In deciding what laws or policies to enact, a government should do whatever will maximize the happiness of as a whole. Secondly, Utilitarianism is probably the most defensible approach in emergency situations. For example, in the wake of the massive earthquake that hit Pakistan in 2005, the medical rescued firstly the people that were most likely to survive because it did little good to spend time on a terminal patient than the people get hurt that might get more benefits from the treatment.
However, the frequently criticized weakness of utilitarianism is it fails to respect individual rights. The needs of the individuals are usually ignored to fit the needs of the group or organization. That might cause all kinds of abuses to occur. For example, numerous lawsuits charged that Wal-Mart cheated its employees because Mal-Mart didn’t pay overtime salaries and cut labor costs for the greater good of the company. In addition, another weakness is that identifying possible consequences can be difficult or impossible. The reason is that being objective is difficult because people usually tend to favor immediate rewards and ignore long-term risks. This might make Utilitarian decision makers sometimes make different conclusions when they face the same dilemma. For example, one country might want to raise the highway speed but they don’t have the consent of the speed limits, some state legislators decide that the speed of 65 miles per hour produces the greatest good, others may decide the speed of 70 miles per hour generates the most benefits.
Besides, Libertarianism also reflects strengths. The first strength of Libertarianism is self-ownership. This is especially appealing for those who
However, the frequently criticized weakness of utilitarianism is it fails to respect individual rights. The needs of the individuals are usually ignored to fit the needs of the group or organization. That might cause all kinds of abuses to occur. For example, numerous lawsuits charged that Wal-Mart cheated its employees because Mal-Mart didn’t pay overtime salaries and cut labor costs for the greater good of the company. In addition, another weakness is that identifying possible consequences can be difficult or impossible. The reason is that being objective is difficult because people usually tend to favor immediate rewards and ignore long-term risks. This might make Utilitarian decision makers sometimes make different conclusions when they face the same dilemma. For example, one country might want to raise the highway speed but they don’t have the consent of the speed limits, some state legislators decide that the speed of 65 miles per hour produces the greatest good, others may decide the speed of 70 miles per hour generates the most benefits.
Besides, Libertarianism also reflects strengths. The first strength of Libertarianism is self-ownership. This is especially appealing for those who