A FAIR AND DECENT SOCIETY: Where Is the John Rawls for this Generation?

“It is generally accepted that the recent rebirth of normative political philosophy began with the publication of John Rawls’s A Theory of Justice in 1971.” William Kymlicka

“Political philosophers now must either work within Rawls’ theory or explain why not.” Robert Nozick

“Justice is the first virtue of social institutions, as truth is of systems of thought. A theory however elegant and economical must be rejected or revised if it is untrue; likewise, laws and institutions no matter how efficient and well-arranged must be reformed or abolished if they are unjust.” John Rawls

“Even in moving away from Rawls, we are fully engaged with him. Surely that is a sign of his work’s depth and enduring significance.” Martha Nussbaum

In the early 1970s, when I began applying to graduate school, I asked several people where was the best place to pursue a Ph.D. in Political Economy? They basically repeated what one of my most admired economics professors told me, that this field of study no longer existed. He also said that the phrase had become a euphemism for Marxism, and “you will never have an academic career were you to venture there”.

I began applying to places that would at least allow me to cobble together a degree between political science, economics, and maybe even environmental studies. One place that I applied (Brown University) was not the most accommodating of my eclecticism, but had a…