Veil of Ignorance
Notes
Claim
According to John Rawls, the way we should build or act within a society is according to the maximin principle—we should choose the world in which the situation of the persons worst off is the highest it can be. Most benefits come from a small proportion of inputs
Explanation
This is the only logical conclusion that we should make when making decisions behind the veil of ignorance—i.e., making the decision without knowing who you'd turn up to be in that society. All moral agents are inherently entitled to basic rights regardless of utility or merit Morality is both rational and emotional
Why it matters
Making decisions this way doesn't necessarily mean we should be egalitarian, since equality could make everyone worse off. Inequality is a normative problem caused by unjust distribution of resources and rights Compared to Capitalism where you have huge inequality, but even the poor are better off than in a Communism country.