tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5687347459208158501.post1412013581660711401..comments2024-03-29T03:19:09.227-04:00Comments on The Philosopher's Stone: THREE CHEERS FOR JEREMY BENTHAMRobert Paul Wolffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11970360952872431856noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5687347459208158501.post-29930071217936810162014-09-30T10:29:21.647-04:002014-09-30T10:29:21.647-04:00In principle, economists can (and some do) use soc...In principle, economists can (and some do) use social welfare functions to sidestep the restriction to Pareto-efficiency. Tony Atkinson's inequality measure can be used to assess tradeoffs (where relevant) between equity and efficiency. The Atkinson approach does require an explicit view of "aversion to inequality", ranging from quasi-Rawlsian using only the income of the poorest person, to simply adding the sum of individual incomes across the economy. Some economists have even used this approach to estimate how averse the general American population is to inequality -- not very, on one early analysis by Harberger.wallyverrhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18358344785499490511noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5687347459208158501.post-26156235098963507842014-09-29T23:02:18.426-04:002014-09-29T23:02:18.426-04:00How many cheers for his brother Samuel Bentham?How many cheers for his brother Samuel Bentham?Ian J. Seda Irizarryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03791805107306447252noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5687347459208158501.post-27587829635679079392014-09-29T17:24:59.757-04:002014-09-29T17:24:59.757-04:00Marx on Bentham:
Bentham is a purely English phen...Marx on Bentham:<br /><br />Bentham is a purely English phenomenon. Not even excepting our philosopher, Christian Wolff, in no time and in no country has the most homespun commonplace ever strutted about in so self-satisfied a way. The principle of utility was no discovery of Bentham. He simply reproduced in his dull way what Helvétius and other Frenchmen had said with esprit in the 18th century. To know what is useful for a dog, one must study dog-nature. This nature itself is not to be deduced from the principle of utility. Applying this to man, he that would criticise all human acts, movements, relations, etc., by the principle of utility, must first deal with human nature in general, and then with human nature as modified in each historical epoch. Bentham makes short work of it. With the driest naiveté he takes the modern shopkeeper, especially the English shopkeeper, as the normal man. Whatever is useful to this queer normal man, and to his world, is absolutely useful. This yard-measure, then, he applies to past, present, and future. The Christian religion, e.g., is "useful," "because it forbids in the name of religion the same faults that the penal code condemns in the name of the law." Artistic criticism is "harmful," because it disturbs worthy people in their enjoyment of Martin Tupper, etc. With such rubbish has the brave fellow, with his motto, "nuila dies sine line!," piled up mountains of books. Had I the courage of my friend, Heinrich Heine, I should call Mr. Jeremy a genius in the way of bourgeois stupidity.Chrishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08250295324149056708noreply@blogger.com