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May 18, 2006
The Peace Of Freedom--The Positive Peace Principle Part III
But, one may still ask, despite the benefits of a positive peace I described in Part II, does such freedom really promote social justice (the final element of the Positive Peace Principle listed in Part I)? Is a positive peace a just peace? To answer this some idea of the Good or Just society must be joined with that of peace. But, to pose this is to offer a Rubik Cube full of twists and turns and different colors. I have analyzed this puzzle in my The Just Peace and will outline the approach and conclusion here.
To begin, let us ask this question. What would be the response if all people in the world were asked collectively what kind of political institutions they wanted to live under, given that they lacked advance knowledge about their own initial status and rank in this society and their resources and skills? And let us ask this under conditions and in a manner (such as each person having an equal vote and fair unanimity is required) that the answers would constitute principles of a just political order. Assuming we have surmounted the mere technological problem of instant communication with all, the first answers undoubtedly would reflect the diverse religions, secular ideologies, and cultures of the world's peoples. If pushed for unanimity, or even for a majority opinion, only deadlock could reasonably be expected; and it would be silly to propose that Moslems, Hindus, and Catholics; Marxists, Monarchists, and Liberal Democrats; Nigerians, Japanese, and Iranians would agree on any compromise system of political institutions. At this level, an agreeable answer is not forthcoming.
(Continued here)
Posted by Rudy at May 18, 2006 10:38 PM
