Currently viewing the tag: "poverty"
Eudaimonism and Non-Aggression
By Roderick Long On April 30, 2013 · 53 Comments · In Consequentialism, Libertarianism, Rights Theory
There are two ways one can go wrong with regard to the non-aggression principle (NAP).
One way to go wrong is to treat the NAP as a rigid, out-of-context principle that can be applied fairly mechanically with little attention to other values or to the details of the situation.
The other way to go [...]
Bryan Caplan doesn’t think he has a moral duty to help the poor. I disagree.
But, duty or no, Bryan wants to help them anyway. And he wants your help to do so more effectively.
So, my resourceful readers, let’s help Bryan channel his bleeding heart to maximum utility!
Over at Philosophy etc, Bradley Gabbard argues that a widespread intuition about the trolley problem can justify compulsory aid to the global poor. Here is the trolley problem:
A runaway trolley is on course to kill five innocent people. I can switch the trolley to another track, saving the five but [...]
Poor people frequently make what appear to be stupid, self-destructive choices. For instance, there’s a distant cousin, Aaron, on my wife’s side. Aaron lacks a high school diploma and is always nearly broke. However, Aaron spends what little money he has on cigarettes and small tattoos rather than on things that would actually [...]
David Friedman on Social Justice and Utilitarianism
By Matt Zwolinski On May 6, 2012 · 35 Comments · In Consequentialism, Libertarianism, Social Justice
One of the themes in my recent conversation at Cato Unbound with David Friedman was whether utilitarianism or social justice is a better concept for thinking about the moral obligations we have to the poor. I recently continued that conversation on this blog with a
In his new book, Thinking Fast and Slow, Daniel Kahneman illustrates a lesson of central importance to bleeding heart libertarians: that if you want to help the poor, trusting your intuitions about how to do so is a bad way to go.
Kahneman illustrates this point with a story from Thomas Schelling’s [...]
So, it turns out that Bryan Caplan isn’t a bleeding heart libertarian either.
Unlike Will, though, Bryan’s problem isn’t with the libertarianism of BHL, but with its bleeding heart. Bryan, you see, doesn’t think we have much in the [...]
Property, Liberty, and the Deserving Poor
By Matt Zwolinski On February 7, 2012 · 15 Comments · In Academic Philosophy, Book/Article Reviews, Current Events, Libertarianism
Despite the exciting title, I suppose this is really just an overblown links post. First, a couple of (relative) quickies:
First, Terrance Tomkow has an interesting post on “The Origins of Property.” It draws on some of his earlier posts on “The Retributive Theory of Property” and, more generally, [...]
Helping the Poor: Sacrifice, Intentions, and Outcomes
By Matt Zwolinski On November 3, 2011 · 39 Comments · In Consequentialism, Exploitation, Social Justice
My friend David Sobel argues that even if sweatshops are benefiting the global poor, this doesn’t mean that they are fulfilling whatever obligations they might have to aid the less fortunate:
This activity on the part of corporations, I think it safe to assume, is motivated purely by economic self-interest on the part of the corporation. [...]
Since my last post on the subject, Bryan Caplan has put up two very interesting posts over at EconLog about the distinction between the deserving and undeserving poor. The issue is this: is there a genuine distinction to be made between the poor who deserve our help [...]
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