Radical Perspective (Essay Sample)

Radical View of Equality
Equality of opportunity means eliminating both formal and informal barriers that hinder equality. Formal barriers in most cases are the lack of opportunity because a person was born into a family that is not in the aristocracy. Furthermore, inequality of opportunity has been as a result of being born into a particular racial group. Equality of opportunity should therefore not be based on arbitrary factors such as family background and race but on talent (Clark, 1998). On the other, achieving equality in result, as much as it would create equality is almost impossible. The government should not try in any case to achieve equality in result. What the government should do is to ensure that everyone starts off at the same point and not that everyone ends up in the same condition (Aalberg, 2003). If the government has provided equal opportunities, then what they make of those opportunities is their responsibility, and the government should not intervene.
Government efforts to increase taxation and confiscate property of the rich are also debatable. Taking such a radical perspective would imply that the rich are punished for their success and good fortune. Furthermore, such a move would hinder economic growth as the rich would withdraw their resources. The lack of employment would only hit the poor hardest, making them even worse off. We should consider that for the economy to grow, investors need be confident that they will be rewarded for their investments. Punitive tax measures are likely to discourage investment and innovation that will in turn even create greater levels of inequality. Government efforts to assist the disadvantaged are also likely not likely to achieve equality (Aalberg, 2003). Different people value different things in different ways. Providing money, land, comfort, physical health and consumer goods to the disadvantaged leaves no room for diversity of preferences and hence inflicts even more inequality.
Radical view of Justice
Justice dictates that everyone in an original position should agree that all primary goods should be distributed equally to all people in the society unless unequal distribution favours the less fortunate in the society. The primary goods, in this case, include income, wealth, freedom of choice, the base of self-respect and political freedom (International Bar Association, & United Nations, 2003). Justice is, therefore, a concept of fairness that focuses on the equal distribution of resources. Only the weak and disadvantaged in the society should benefit from inequality. Furthermore, access to essentials such as health care, water, food and shelter is perceived as justice. Lack of essential commodities in life among the minority is an injustice. The government should thus ensure justice in the society by ensuring that all its citizens have access to human essentials.
For justice to be achieved there should be an impartial administration of the law. No one in the society should be above the law, not even the president of a republic. The society should be bound by the same laws. This means that the justice system should be well-developed through the enactment of efficient policies and be free from corruption and favouritism to ...