Real Freedom for All: What (if anything) can justify capitalism? (Oxford Politician Theory)

Capitalist Societies Are Full Of Unacceptable Inequalities. Freedom Is Of Paramount Importance. These Two Convictions Are Widely Shared Across The World, Yet They Seem To Be Completely Contradictory With Each Other. Fighting Inequality Jeopardizes Freedom, And Taking Freedom Seriously Boosts Inequality. Can This Conflict Be Resolved? In This Ground-breaking Book, Philippe Van Parijs Sets Out A New And Compelling Case For A Just Society. Assessing And Rejecting The Claims Of Both Socialism And Conventional Capitalism, He Presents A Clear And Compelling Alternative Vision Of The Just Society: A Capitalist Society Offering A Substantial And Unconditional Basic Income To All Its Members. Not Just An Exercise In Political Theory, This Book Goes On To Show What His Ideal Of A Free Society Means In The Real World By Drawing Out Its Policy Implications. It Will Be Essential Reading For Anyone Concerned About The Just Society And The Welfare State As We Move Into The Twenty-first Century. -- ‡c From Publisher's Description. 1. Capitalism, Socialism, And Freedom -- 2. The Highest Sustainable Basic Income -- 3. Undominated Diversity -- 4. Jobs As Assets -- 5. Exploitation Versus Real Freedom -- 6. Capitalism Justified? Philippe Van Parijs. Includes Bibliographical References (p. [299]-318) And Indexes. 0198293577......Page 1 CONTENTS......Page 12 INTRODUCTION......Page 14 Prologue......Page 16 1.1 Capitalism versus socialism......Page 18 1.2 Pure socialism as the free society......Page 20 1.3 Pure capitalism as the free society......Page 24 1.4 Individual versus collective sovereignty......Page 28 1.5 Freedom to what? Duty, autonomy, and potential desire......Page 30 1.6 Freedom from what? Two notions of coercion......Page 33 1.7 Formal freedom versus real freedom......Page 34 1.8 Real-libertarianism......Page 38 Prologue......Page 43 2.1 A radical suggestion......Page 45 2.2 Unconditionality and real freedom......Page 48 2.3 Sustainability......Page 51 2.4 Cash or kind?......Page 54 2.5 Initial endowment or regular instalment?......Page 58 2.6 What metric for real freedom?......Page 61 2.7 Competitive pricing, opportunity costs, and envy-freeness......Page 64 2.8 Comparing real freedom across regimes......Page 67 Appendix: Basic income versus negative income tax......Page 70 Prologue......Page 71 3.1 The extended auction......Page 73 3.2 Working in the peep-show, flirting in the square......Page 76 3.3 Insurance behind a veil of ignorance......Page 78 3.4 Four objections to Dworkin......Page 81 3.5 Ackerman generalized......Page 85 3.6 Not enough redistribution?......Page 90 3.7 Alternative strategies......Page 92 3.8 Too much redistribution?......Page 95 Appendix 1: Roemer versus Dworkin......Page 97 Appendix 2: Affluence, opulence, abundance, and minimum income guarantees......Page 99 Appendix 3: Undominated diversity and envy-freeness......Page 100 Prologue......Page 102 4.1 The Crazy–Lazy challenge......Page 105 4.2 Rawls versus Dworkin......Page 109 4.3 Can our inheritance be boosted?......Page 115 4.4 Equal endowments in a non-Walrasian world......Page 119 4.5 Sharing, bribing, and the elimination of job scarcity......Page 122 4.6 From job auctions to income tax......Page 126 4.7 An inconsistent proposal? Employment rents with unequal talents......Page 132 4.8 A slippery slope? From the right to work to the right to marry......Page 138 Appendix: Crazy, Lazy, and Rawls's revised Difference Principle......Page 144 Prologue......Page 146 5.1 Deriving an advantage from someone's work......Page 149 5.2 Power, gifts, free rides......Page 153 5.3 Lockean exploitation......Page 158 5.4 Creators keepers......Page 163 5.5 Lutheran exploitation......Page 166 5.6 To each according to her efforts......Page 173 5.7 Roemerian exploitation......Page 182 5.8 Asset-based inequality......Page 191 Prologue......Page 199 6.1 Optimal capitalism versus optimal socialism......Page 204 6.2 The capitalist shaping of preferences......Page 208 6.3 Market failures and dispensable activities......Page 212 6.4 Crises......Page 216 6.5 The reserve army of the unemployed......Page 223 6.6 Creative destruction......Page 227 6.7 Popular sovereignty......Page 233 6.8 Steering clear of Penguins Island......Page 239 Notes......Page 247 References......Page 312 E......Page 332 M......Page 333 T......Page 334 Y......Page 335 C......Page 336 E......Page 337 J......Page 339 O......Page 340 S......Page 341 U......Page 342 W......Page 343

capitalist Societies Are Full Of Unacceptable Inequalities. Freedom Is Of Paramount Importance. These Two Convictions, Widely Shared Around The World, Seem To Be In Direct Contradiction With Each Other. Fighting Inequality Jeopardizes Freedom, And Taking Freedom Seriously Boosts Inequality. Can This Conflict Be Resolved? In This Ground-breaking Book, Philippe Van Parijs Sets A New And Compelling Case For A Just Society. Assessing And Rejecting The Claims Of Both Socialism And Conventional Capitalism, He Presents A Clear And Compelling Alternative Vision Of The Just Society: A Capitalist Society Offering A Substantial And Unconditional Basic Income To All Its Members. Not Just An Exercise In Political Theory, This Book Reveals A New Ideal Of A Free Society And Its Meaning In The Real World By Drawing Out Its Policy Implications. It Is Essential Reading For Anyone Concerned About The Just Society And The Welfare State As We Move Into The Twenty-first Century.

Capitalist societies are full of unacceptable inequalities. Freedom is of paramount importance. These two convictions are widely shared across the world. Yet they often seem in complete contradiction with each other. Fighting inequality jeopardizes freedom; taking freedom seriously boosts inequality. What can be done? Can the circle be squared? Philippe Van Parijs offers a ground breaking solution to the dilemma. Assessing and rejecting the claims of both socialism and conventional capitalism, he presents a clear and compelling alternative vision of the just society: a capitalist society offering a substantial unconditional basic income to all its members. Moving beyond pure political theory, Van Parijs shows what his ideal of free society means in the real world by drawing out its controversial policy implications. Real Freedom for All will be essential reading for anyone concerned about the just society and the welfare state as we move into the twenty first century. Assessing and rejecting the claims of both socialism and conventional capitalism, the author presents his alternative vision of the just society: a capitalist society offering a substantial unconditional basic income to all its members