Just Better Utilitarianism

Abstract

Utilitarianism could still be a viable moral and political theory, although an emphasis on justice as distributing burdens and benefits has hidden this from current conversations. The traditional counterexamples prove that we have good grounds for rejecting classical, aggregative forms of consequentialism. A nonaggregative, liberal form of utilitarianism is immune to this rejection. The cost is that it cannot adjudicate when the basic needs of individuals or groups are in conflict. Cases like this must be solved by other methods. This is not a weakness in liberal utilitarianism, on the contrary. The theory clarifies what we should admit to begin with: that ethical doctrines do not have universally acceptable solutions to all difficult problems or hard cases. The theory also reminds us that not all problems are in this sense difficult or cases hard. We could alleviate the plight of nonhuman animals by reducing meat eating. We could mitigate climate change and its detrimental effects by choosing better ways of living. These would imply that most people’s desire satisfaction would be partly frustrated, but liberal utilitarianism holds that this would be justified by the satisfaction of the basic needs of other people and nonhuman animals.

Liberal Utilitarianism—Yes, But for Whom?

“…In his important paper "Just Better Utilitarianism," Matti Häyry reminds his readers that liberal utilitarianism can offer a basis for moral and political choices in bioethics and thus could be helpful in decisionmaking. 1 Although I agree with the general defense of Häyry's liberal utilitarianism, in this commentary, I urge Häyry to say more on who belongs to our moral community. I challenge Häyry's principle of actual or prospective existence.…”

Transplante renal preemptivo: por que, quando e como?

“…O modelo de utilidade social (teoria utilitarista), por exemplo, prioriza os pacientes mais úteis à comunidade 19 . A teoria do prioritarismo, por outro lado, defende a priorização dos pacientes mais gravemente doentes (piores condições) 20 , enquanto o modelo de beneficência considera critérios como maior expectativa de vida e maior número de vidas salvas 21 .…”

Universal Credit, Lone Mothers and Poverty: Some Ethical Challenges for Social Work with Children and Families

“…Finally, more critical accounts of UC and related workfare policies have chiefly originated from rights-based ethical frameworks, including as part of a wider 'justice turn' in ethics (Hayry 2020). This set of paradigms draw tangible influence from Kantian deontological perspectives (among others) and includes a rationale that we should avoid restricting personal rights at all costs, even if this achieves wider societal gains.…”