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I agree
with Fred. Rawls' principles are unworkable because the better
endowed people have no reason to accept them and basically end up
being sacrificed for the benefit of the less well endowed.
And not only is this situation unsustainable in the real world,
but it should force us to reconsider an assumption that Rawls made;
namely, that people do not deserve benefits that flow from
differences in natural endowment or capability because they do not
deserve those capabilities. Rawls' argument depends on that
assumption. That's crucial.
Rawls believes that we do not deserve our superior capablities,
and therefore they cannot be considered in choosing basic rules of
justice. They should be placed behind the veil of ignorance in the
Original Position.
But if we say instead that people have a right to benefits
derive from their basic capabilities even though they do not deserve
those capabilities, then there is no reason to exclude knowledge of
our capabilities from the parties in the original position. And if
that knowledge is not excluded, there will be real negotiation in
the Original Position. The better endowed will have no reason to accept Rawls'
principles.
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