Liberty Fund Books
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Ethics of Redistribution, The
By Bertrand de Jouvenel
Introduction by John Gray
Pub Date |
Feb 1990 |
Notes |
Foreword and preface to the first edition, introduction, appendix, index. |
| Format | Size Pages | ISBN-10 ISBN-13 | Price | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cloth | 5.5 x 8.25 | 0-86597-084-X 978-0-86597-084-7 | $18.00 | |
| Paperback | 5.5 x 8.25 | 0-86597-085-8 978-0-86597-085-4 | $12.00 |
Description
After reading this insightful and charming classic, no one can believe that there are any arguments left for the redistributionist. De Jouvenel devastates every claim for either logic or morality in their position. . .
—Henry G. Manne, Dean, School of Law, George Mason University
In this concise and elegant work, first published in 1952, Bertrand de Jouvenel purposely ignores the economic evidence that redistributional efforts sap incentives and are economically destructive. Rather, he stresses the commonly disregarded ethical arguments showing that redistribution is ethically indefensible for, and practically unworkable in, a complex society.
A new introduction relates Jouvenel's arguments to current discussions about the redistributionist state and draws out many of the points of affinity with the works of Buchanan, Hayek, Rawls, and others.
John Gray is a Fellow at Jesus College, Oxford.
Table of Contents
Foreword to the first edition vii Preface to the first edition ix Introduction by John Gray xi Lecture I/The Socialist Ideal 3The process of redistribution
Our subject: the ethical aspect
Land redistribution in perspective
Land redistribution not equivalent to redistribution of income
Equalization of land assets: how far similar to and how far different from equalization of capital
Socialism as the City of Brotherly Love
How to do away with antagonism: socialist goal and socialist means
The inner contradiction of socialism
Redistribution and the scandal of poverty
The notions of relief and of lifting working?class standards merged
Indecent low?living and indecent high?living
The floor and the ceiling: intellectual harmony and financial harmony
How low a ceiling?
A discussion of satisfactions
The theory of diminishing utility
Further points and qualifications
Discrimination against minorities
The effect of redistribution upon society
The more redistribution, the more power to the State
Values and satisfactions
Are subjective satisfactions an exclusive standard?
Redistributionism the end result of utilitarian individualism Lecture II/State Expenditure 49
Two views of income
Taxation not purely disincentive
Another view of income
Gnawing the income?bone
Conflict of subjective egalitarianism and objective socialism
Functional expenditures well received if charged to corporate bodies
The treatment of corporate bodies compared to that of families
Consumption expenditures as a form of national investment
Purposeful expenditures the State's privilege
A high degree of taxation in all ranges
The camouflage of personal expenditures
The destruction of free services
Commercialization of values
A redistribution of power from individuals to the State
Redistribution an incentive to tolerating the growth of public expenditure
Redistribution incidental to centralization?
Envy a fundamental motive? Appendix/The Potentialities of Pure Redistribution 81 Index 93
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