PHLA11H3 Lecture Notes - Lecture 7: Kantianism, Rationality, Universalizability
Document Summary
Morality is not as utilitarianism says fundamentally about improving well being, or overall human happiness. Morality has to do, most fundamentally, with fairness and the respect owed to each individual as a human being. Example: tax evasion: tim cheats on his taxes, reasoning as follows, if i cheat, i will be able to afford a vacation with my family. So, we will get a lot of happiness. And it would just be a few thousand dollars just a drop in the government"s giant bucket. No one will suffer if i don"t pay all the money i owe. : according to utilitarianism: If tim is right that no one will suffer in virtue of his not paying all his taxes, then it seems he has acted rightly: but intuitively: We all rely on the tax system to pay for crucial services. So, tim is relying on others to contribute their shares, while excepting himself from doing so.
