World Views

A biologically grounded approach to social justice is the middle-ground between capitalism and socialism. I call this new ideology “fair shares” and I propose a  framework that includes three complementary principles: (1) goods and services should be distributed to each according to his/her “basic needs”(which have a concrete  biological foundation);  (2) surpluses beyond the provision for our basic needs should be distributed according to “merit” (a principle which I will seek to clarify); and (3), in return, each of us is obliged to contribute to the “collective survival enterprise” in accordance with his/her ability (under the principle of reciprocity).

Moldering on my refrigerator door is a browned 3-by-4-inch newsprint clipping of a single frame from Max Fleischer’s animated cartoon “KoKo’s Earth Control”, dated (c.) 1928.  In the frame, KoKo the clown is lecturing his dog Fitz about the huge lever imbedded in the wall behind him below a sign proclaiming, “Danger, beware, do not touch earth control!  If this handle is pulled, the world will come to an end!”