Published on 12, July, 2020
Does society have a duty to account for unequal outcomes in income, health, relationship success and happiness?
Roswell said:Does society have a duty to account for unequal outcomes in income, health, relationship success and happiness?
What do you mean by 'account for'?
If you mean should society as a whole do its best to equalise opportunities for others, then that's the socialist viewpoint and I would say 'yes'.
Here is a definition of socialism -v- capitalism.
https://www.britannica.com/money/topic/socialism
I think that our society has over the decades, with varying success, been one of the best ones at this.
There is horrendous inequality in other countries in the world.
I think that we should as individuals take some responsibility too by, say, giving to charities where we can.
That's all down to individuals though and a lot of people aren't concerned with society as a whole but rather with their own family unit.
You have given 4 areas and what others can do with regard to each area varies.
Income - we are a country with minimum wage and social support which is a lot more than some other countries have.
However, a lot more could be done by this capitalist government to help the most vulnerable, if there was a will, which there isn't.
Health - we are blessed with the NHS and should treat it as a precious jewel.
It is however grossly underfunded and being privatised by stealth.
A lot of things impact health too, such as poverty, so there is a strong tie-in there.
Happiness - I don't think society can do that much to make people happy apart from ensuring we have the necessities of life, which of course vary from person to person.
Relationship success - mmm ... that's a really tricky one.
In the 'old days' a woman would be married off to a man, whether she wanted him or not, whether she was gay or not, and that still happens in some countries/cultures.
I don't think I want society to put it's sticky fingers into my relationship pie.
I could say vastly more but I'm holding back.
I'd appreciate a qualification of what you mean by 'society' (everyone, government?) and 'account for' (take responsibility for?).
Just think where we were before our socialist governments ((Liberal)/Labour) created the NHS and the welfare state.
In retrospect I’m slightly jealous of cultures which have arranged marriages. It would have helped me massively.
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Working in a predominately female domain, I actually miss male colleagues. The banter is usually better and they don't bore me with pictures of their kids.
Peter said:Sure you hear about these places in the 70s where offices had nude calendas on the wall
I worked in a large power company for around 6 months in 1999 and our IT support office was staffed entirely by women. They had smutty male calendars on the wall of their office. Possibly trying to make a statement but we all took it in good fun.
haven't been very good at maintaining friendships, and friends have 'dropped' me
This seems to be a very common autistic experience.