POSC Final

The Racial Contract (4)

"any case the general purpose of the contract is always the differential privileging of the whites as a group with respect to the nonwhites as a group the exploitation of their bodies, land, and resources, and the denial of equal socioeconomic opportunities to them"

The Racial Contract (2)

"henceforth designated by (shifting) 'racial' (phenotypical/genotypical/cultural) = ways Mills says people can be racialized

The Racial Contract (3)

"or established or in transactions as aliens with these polities and the moral juridical rules normally regulating the behavior of whites in their dealings with nonwhites or apply only in a qualified form" = the law should apply equally- not in a qualified form

The Racial Contract (1)

"that set of formal or informal agreements or meta-agreements between the members of one subset of humans" = a group of people agreeing on a set of things/agreements

Pettit's 2 Impulses

(1) Master-slave relationship -the possibility of interference -arbitrary (2) Sometimes interference is good -traffic laws allow for greater freedoms because they provide predictability and safety

When are decisions non-arbitrary?

(1) When they follow certain procedures (2) When there is direct or indirect control by the people

Basic Right: 3 Duties

(1) duties to avoid depriving (2) duties to protect from deprivation (3) duties to aid the deprived

What is the feminist critique of individualism?

(1) ego-ism- each person has but one ultimate goal: their own welfare (2) normative self sufficiency: liberalism encourages projects of self-sufficiency, minimizing cooperation of others

A resolution?

(1) feminism is right to rule out the "strict distinction" model (2) we should reject the "spontaneity" model (3) feminism is right to reject preferences as given

3 Values of Liberalism +defs of them

(1) individuals- basic unit of political thought; prior to society (2) abstract equality- too abstract and overly formal on equality (3) excessive rationality- rationality and reason are different

Where do rights come from?

(1) it comes with being a human (2) A God or creator (3) laws and political institutions (4) Maybe lesser things (not moral rights in this case)

Forms of Anti-Power

(1) regulate (laws and policies) (2) investment (3) a cultural shift

Security

(negative rights) the right that others should not harm/interfere with my security/safety

Subsistence

(positive rights) the right to subsist (w/ food, shelter, water, etc.)

Positive Liberty

*a self-mastery* -a capacity to act -to control ones self -I am free to the extent that there are no internal barriers to do what I want to do -a capacity to act; nothing w/in myself stops me from doing what I want to do

Negative Liberty

*protection from external forces* -a freedom to be left alone to whatever one chooses - a freedom from -I am free to the extent that there are no external obstacles in my way -no one, nothing stops me from doing the things I want to do -freedom from external obstacles especially from gov't/ state entity

What would make a contract unfair?

- -

Equality (liberalism)

- a moral equality of persons -the presumption of equality -What does Rawls tell us about equality? (1)Rights- in the end the least advantaged will benefit from the better off being paid/given more for their natural skills that will be good for certain jobs (2) of opportunity (3) inequality permitted if and only if it benefits the least advantaged

Autonomy (liberalism)

- a sphere of life over which you have total control; any gov't or institutions should presume you are autonomous about your life choices

The State of Nature

- contracts removed from biases - arguments FROM NATURE - together are supposed to give them their persuasive power

In non-ideal, what is not in compliance?

- difference - dominance - race

Nussbaum Reply 2

- the excess of neutrality - slippage between liberals "in the law" and "liberal philosophy"

Special Rights

-a special transaction or relationship - promises - contracts - "mutuality of restrictions": political obligations and social contracts (3) laws and political institutions (4) Maybe lesser things (not moral rights in this case)

General Rights

-asserted defensively when some unjustified interference is anticipated or threatened -to have them is to have a moral justification for determining how another shall act -the moral justification of the equal right to be free

What would a gov't maximizing positive liberty look like?

-authoritarian -Berlin argues that if we tried to legislate in ways to maximize positive liberty we would violate autonomy - ex/ laws forcing you to go to the gym, read everyday, etc.

We were never unbiased

-historical= a distinction between "men" and "natives" -society required white intervention= was what existed before not a society

What would a gov't maximizing negative liberty look like?

-less laws = more freedom -a freedom from regulations, laws, etc. -gov'ts should be small and not interfere with our lives

What would make a procedure non-arbitrary? And what would that mean in a democracy/Republic?

-non-arbitrary= if it went through an agreed upon procedure -in a democracy that means: ~constitutional mechanisms ~rough equality of participants ~the eye test

We are still dealing with those consequences

-only the equality in the pre-political state is preserved -the whole point is material advantage (to justify it) -European hegemony US disparities

What is the feminist critique of excessive rationality?

-other things make us human -liberals rely too much on rationality and reasonableness to define humanity -it leaves out other crucial components of humanity (emotions and imagination)

Values of Liberalism

-rights -equality -autonomy

What happens when the world around us keeps us from doing what we want?

-self emancipation (the leg) -I am free only to the degree that I am "fettered" (restrained with chains or manacles) -there are 2 ways to remove an obstacle -leaning too much into positive liberty means you label external issues as internal ones (ex/ Nazis = Jews fault)

Since rights are not absolute they are:

-waive-able -override-able -forfeitable

Non-ideal and contracts

1) the contract's conditions 2) the ability for the contract to meaning fully apply

Non Ideal (person and aspects)

Feminists and Marx - partial compliance - realistic -transitional

Natural Rights

Natural rights are rights that are not dependent on the laws or customs of any particular culture or government, and so are universal, fundamental and inalienable. They are believed to be given by nature or God, and cannot be revoked by human laws. They apply to every single person in the world, regardless of legislation or cultural differences

Ideal (person and aspects)

Rawls - full compliance - utopian - end state

Rawls & Liberalism

Rawls is our standard thought of a liberal liberal = rights, freedom of choice

What does it mean to be dominated?

Someone or something: (1) has the capacity to interfere (2) on an arbitrary basis (3) in certain choice that the other is in a position to make

How is the Racial Contract different from Rawls ideas? What is Mills criticism of Rawls?

The criticism is that Rawls ignores the fact that our contracts and systems are based around race

Republicanism

a freedom from domination/ freedom as non-domination

Generic Definition of Duty

a moral or legal obligation; a responsibility

What is the eye test?

are we equal enough to sit across from each other and look each other in the eyes to make demands on one another

Why does Berlin emphasize negative liberty?

because emphasizing positive liberty causes people to lose their autonomy

Opportunity Concept

being free is a matter of what we can do, of what is open to us to do whether or not we do anything to exercise these options

Exercise Concept

freedom involves the exercising of control over one's life; one is free only to the extent that one has effectively determined oneself and the shape of ones life

Phenotypical

how people appear

Nussbaum Reply 3

it is actually 1 process where our emotions work in tandem with or in response to reasoning processes

What does it mean to have a right? Or what does it mean to me that you have a particular right?

it means that I have some sort of duty to you

What kinds of things allow for "the capacity to interfere"?

laws, structures, and norms that govern or dictate relationships

What is the feminist critique of abstract equality?

liberalism too heavily disregards differences making it hard to actually treat people as equals given real hierarchies; rationality and reasonableness are not the same thing

Nussbaum Reply 1

liberals don't actually believe in individualism to the point that undermines values of social cooperation b/c of the principle of utility and the "original position"; working together behind the veil of ignorance

arbitrary

on a whim, without needing a reason or having to go through a specific procedure

The Social Contract Theory

people live together in society in accordance with an agreement that established moral and political rules of behavior

General Definition of Rights

rights are entitlements (not) to perform certain actions or (not) to be in certain states; or entitlements that others (not) perform certain actions or (not) to be in certain states

Cultural

what practices are "acceptable" or dominant

Genotypical

where we can trace ancestry