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$25,000
$20,000
Plan A
Plan B
$15,000
$10,000
$5,000
$0
Personal income
FIGURE 2.8
Suppose both of these income tax structures will produce the same income to
the government. Plan A is a flat tax in which every citizen pays the same percentage of his
or her income; plan B is a progressive tax in which the income tax rate gradually rises as
a citizen's income increases. Plan B does not treat every citizen equally, but the inequality
is justified under Rawls's difference principle because it is of greatest benefit to the most
disadvantaged.
First, every person in the society should have an equal chance to assume a position
of higher social or economic standing. That means that two people born with equal
intelligence, equal talents, and equal motivation to use them wisely should have the same
probability of reaching an advantaged position, regardless of the social or economic
class to which they were born. For example, the fact that someone's last name is Bush
or Kennedy should not give that person a greater probability of being elected president
of the United States than any other American born with equal intelligence, talent, and
determination.
The second condition, called the
difference principle
, states that social and eco-
nomic inequalities must be justified. The only way to justify a social or economic in-
equality is to show that its overall effect is to provide the most benefit to the least advan-
taged. The purpose of this principle is to help maintain a society composed of free
and
equal
citizens. An example of the difference principle in action is a graduated income tax
system in which people with higher incomes pay a higher percentage of their income in
taxes (Figure 2.8). An example of a violation of the difference principle would be a mil-
itary draft system in which poor people had a higher probability of being drafted than
wealthy people.
SCENARIO
Bill, the owner of a chain of DVD rental stores in a major metropolitan area,
