#139: Veil of Ignorance, Opinion Pageant & Mindreading
3 Ideas in 2 Minutes on Thoughts and Actions
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I. Veil of Ignorance
Imagine you had to establish a fair and just society. What basic liberties, political and economic system would you install? How would you manage the limited resources to the benefit of all in society? And how would you make those choices? Probably based on your current status in society.
The Veil of Ignorance, also known as Original Position, is a thought experiment that attempts to counter that tendency. You’re now asked to pretend you didn’t know what ethnic group you’d belong to or what religion and social status you’d have in the society you create. The concept was popularised by philosopher John Rawls. He thought this approach would lead to fairer and more just societies.
But does feigning ignorance work? Bringing your own values to the table seems inevitable. Say my ideology makes me despise the rich. This value will influence what I value. I could still comfortably create a society in which I potentially lose all my wealth through forced redistribution. Because I’d be convinced I deserve it if I ended up in the 1%.
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