Political Philosophy: Bentham and Kant

Michael Sandel has taught the course "Justice" for over fourteen thousand Harvard students.

His central question is: "What is the right thing to do?"

He analyzes predicaments in the light of Jeremy Bentham's and Immanuel Kant's lessons.

Bentham is the founder of Utilitarianism. For the 18th English thinker, the right thing to do is to maximize utility, that is, we should balance our pleasure over pain, happiness over suffering. Doing so, we end up maximizing our overall level of happiness. Betham's aphorism summarizes this concept: "The greatest good for the greatest number".

Bentham's Utilitarianism resulted in the moral principle of Consequentialist, which locates morality in the consequence of an act. In other words, moral decisions are swayed by the results of our acts.

Kant, the 18th German philosopher, created a different way to analyze what is the right thing to do when we face moral deadlocks. Categorical is the concept which locates morality in certain duties and rights; in other words, the intrinsic quality and character of our acts matter morally. It cannot be right to kill one person to save another or others.

Bentham's and Kant's political philosophical theories, although essentially different, avoid decision-makers become skeptical and taking for granted that skepticism, or the absence of moral reflection, can be an unscathed way out for human dilemmas.

Either Consequentialism or Categorical philosophies both help decision-makers articulate reasons and principles lying behind judgments. This cognitive task is vital "to awaken the restlessness of reasoning and see where it might lead", concludes Sandel.

http://www.ted.com/speakers/michael_sandel.html

Mulgan: Crisis and Innovation

Geoff Mulgan gave a talk about crisis and innovation at TED Talks in 2009.

The former assistant of Tony Blair for public policy affairs believes that 2008 economic crisis signifies a great opportunity for rethinking capitalism.

Leaders and societies are expected to invest less in large corporations and networks and more, maybe 1% of GDP, in social entrepreneurship.

Young entrepreneurs should receive this money since they understand that coming generations seek businesses that add on relationships, empathy, compassion, and care, not consuming bare products and services.

A disciple of Michael Young, the founder of Open University, Mulgan argues that public policies have to undergo thorough experiments before turning consumption societies into sustainable ones.

Best innovations usually come from intelligent leaders who daily face social deprivation. Ideas that change lives are polished by practice, not literature.

Quoting Young, Mulgan concludes: “If you see a problem, you shouldn’t tell someone to act, you should act on it yourself”.

http://www.ted.com/talks/geoff_mulgan_post_crash_investing_in_a_better_world_1.html