Phelps sobre Rawls

"At American universities, the work of John Rawls is typically taught as the correct approach to the question of economics and morality. Offering an alternative to strict egalitarianism, Rawls does not call for equal distribution of material goods to all members of society. He urges instead what he calls the difference principle : Inequality is acceptable as long as the poorest are better o...ff than they would be under equal distribution.

It seems to me, as it does to most people, a persuasive argument that societal inequalities are acceptable as long as they serve as an engine for lifting up the people with the lowest rewards.
The shortcoming I have come to see in Rawls’ model is that it has no place for anything other than the distribution of material goods. He leaves out self-discovery, adventure, and leaping into the unknown. It is wrongheaded to maintain that a good society could be one that stifles challenge and personal growth if that is what it takes to provide the people at the bottom the last cookie that can be eked out of society’s resources. People don’t have the right to a few more cookies if it comes at the expense of all other people’s self-realization, self-discovery, and self-fulfillment as homo innovaticus."
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