If I as a board member used John Rawls theory of justice I would worry about each individual’s rights. The utilitarianism theory would recommend one person losing their job in order to save ten jobs but on the other hand, the justice theory would say no, that one individual was treated unethically.…
The United States Pledge of Allegiance is an honorable and commendable mantra. It concludes with, “one nation under God, indivisible with liberty and justice for all.” Justice in the former reference is inclusive for everyone, an entitlement, granted upon birth. John Rawls position of justice is that “everyone should be treated equally and as fair as possible”. Mr. Rawls position parallels the Egalitarian theory of equality and mutual respect. This isn’t necessarily the practice because contrary to the hope for multiple factors are factored in to the outcome.…
There are many laws punishing unfair and discriminatory behaviour. There are, also, social and economic benefits of equal treatment.…
Theories of justice are also referred to in the article. These theories utilize concepts by John Rawls which include ideas on how to “create an environment of opportunity and access by all to the most comprehensive range of prospects” (Colin, 2012, p. 444). This theory can lead to a society where individuals are given opportunities to succeed.…
More than five years ago, a Mississippi court featured a case with a biased and racially bigoted jury (Washington). The defendant, Curtis Flowers, could not receive a fair trial as long as whites outnumbered African Americans on the jury. Aside from the fact that Curtis Flowers’ verdict was guilty, the case reveals the abundance of racism evident in courts. Throughout the second part of To Kill a Mockingbird, racism overshadows equality in the Tom Robinson Case. Many changes come about in Part Two including the following: Aunt Alexandra comes to live with the Finch family, and more importantly, the trial begins. Jem, Scout, and Dill learn the prejudiced and discriminating ways of Maycomb.Throughout the duration of the trial, various citizens of Maycomb testify including Heck Tate, Bob Ewell and his daughter Mayella,…
Fairness/justice: we should make sure that good and bad consequences are distributed fairly; we should pay our debts, treat like cases alike…
“If we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten that we belong to each other.”- Mother Teresa (Quotes About Humanity, n.d.) Peace, serenity, and security is what all of us human aim to achieve, but we must not forget the rules, ethics that we need to obey to help us maintain a healthy society. The other day, I discovered that a priest in my town was offering a mother with her one child some assistance with hiding from the powers after she entered the country illegally. This act has left me torn and confused about what I should do whether I should report his act or not.…
John Rawls bases his Theory of Justice on the intuitive conviction that justice as fairness is the first virtue of social institutions. He argues that in order to ensure fair distributions of advantages in society, a workable set of principles are required in order to determine how institutions ought to distribute rights and duties and to establish a clear way to address competing claims to social advantages. The second principle that Rawls develops stipulates that economic and social inequalities are justifiable so long as the requirements of fair equality of opportunity have been met and if they benefit the worst off in society. Rawls argues that the requirement of improving the conditions of the worst off, known as the Difference Principle,…
As a starting premise, Rawls lays out two principles of justice. The first is that “each person is to have equal rights to the most extensive basic liberties compatible with similar liberties for others” . This principle is essentially absolute, and may not be violated even for the sake of the second principle. Rawls’ second principle of justice is that “social and economic inequalities are to be arranged such that they are both (a) reasonably expected to be to everyone’s advantage and (b) attached to positions and offices open to all”1. Thus, it follows that injustices are inequalities that are not to the advantage of all. Interpretations of this second principle, and particularly of the phrase “to everyone’s advantage” is the basis of different system of equality.…
John Rawls, using Kantian rationality, discusses ways to determine principles of social justice. He begins by making a clear distinction as to what defines the social justice used in his argument – “the way in which the major social institutions distribute fundamental rights and duties and determine the division of advantages from social cooperation”. Rawls then continues to introduce concepts such as the original position which pertains to the thought experiment he calls the veil of ignorance – the original position is a hypothetical state where members of society decide what the principles of justice are. To find the original position, the members must use the veil of ignorance in the sense of having ignorance toward class, intelligence, strength, and things alike, in order to prevent bias and in turn create a fair choice. With this in mind, Rawls sets forth to disprove utilitarianism within justice. He claims that utilitarianism is unjust for it does not respect the rights and liberties of all individuals - if slavery was beneficial to the majority, using utilitarianism logic, some would claim it is just. Rawls argues for the equality of rights; inequalities are justified only if they benefit the society as a whole. He makes a key distinction between the benefit of the majority, and the advantage of all.…
During the presidential elections many issues arise, one of which is income inequality. The idea of economic reality and how people earn, use and distribute their property is the basic starting point for understanding the nature of inequality in society. The debate arises on what gives a person right to property, and whether or not the government has the right to redistribute property from those more wealthy in order to create equality for those who have less. Of course, people can and will differ on whether any of this constitutes a “fair” tax system. Depending on one’s politics and personal situations, some would are for a more social economic structure, and others for a libertarian one. Finding the right balance has become quite the controversy.…
What is fairness? Most of us would agree it involves issues of equality, impartially, proportionally,…
John Rawls introduced a “theory of distributive justice that would be universal, would respect all persons, and be rationally acceptable to all” (DeGeorge, 77). In order to see justice more clearly, an objective approach needs to be taken. In order to ensure that there is no bias in our thought process, Rawls suggests we ‘imagine all people from a veil of ignorance” (DeGeorge, 77). We would ignore any cultural or societal differences that divide us, and make decisions based on what is morally right for all of us. We would make our decisions by looking at life through perspectives that were not cluttered with our own preconceptions. We would rationally make decisions by putting ourselves in others shoes to ensure that the result would be fair. The keys to the theory are “each person is to have equal right to the most extensive basic liberty compatible with similar…
On the one hand, fixed punishment will have a deterring effect on society. ‖Individuals knowing that they will be subject to a certain punishment if they are convicted with a given crime will reconsider committing this act in the first place. ‖This deterring effect also leads to social stability and security, through minimizing the number of crimes committed. ‖If people knew they would be able to convince the court or the jury of reason for having committed the crime they are accused of, penal decisions would be largely arbitrary. This would result into criminals getting away with their crimes and into a high level of injustice caused by the subjective approach of different courts。…
“the observance of treaties; respect for the freedom and equality of all peoples and for human rights; the “duty of nonintervention” and a prohibition on war other than for self-defense; and the “duty to assist other peoples living under unfavorable conditions that prevent their having a just or decent political and social regime.” These principles are the outcome of the second original position among “parties who chose the veil of ignorance that impedes them from knowing their population size and strength of people whom they represent.”…