What Is 'social Justice?

[Colmc54]

What is 'social justice'?

[Obiter]

A friendly judge.

[Colmc54]

How friendly?

But seriously I'd like to know what this concept of 'social justice', so important to the rhetoric of the Scottish 'yes' voters as I have found it to be, actually means to the people who hope to gain yes votes in it's cause.

[Obiter]

A meaningless phrase. It just sounds better than 'socialism', which is what I suspect they mean.

[Colmc54]

Could it possibly mean that it is actually morally right that lazy, idle, hypochondriac people enjoy a benefit derived standard of living that can be beyond parity with those in employment.

[Old_Geezer]

Obviously not, although I expect that might be what you hope it means.

[sevenOP]

Social justice is the ability that people have to realize their potential inside of the society in which they live.

[Colmc54]

A society that surrenders realism in pursuit of idealism is endangered by the rest of the world who stay awake while dreamers dream.

Then social justice will no longer be our gift to those who need it or merely want it because they are able to have it.

I am sixty in a few days time. I've seen it twice in my life in this country. Each time it is worse. The next time will be the grand finale of the triumph of our blinkered populist idealism over global realism.

Punishing effort and ambition and rewarding under-achievement and idleness, we all fall down. But I have learned that we will never learn until, once again, we fall, and still we won't learn!

[vetuste_ennemi]

start with a sensible definition like "organizing a group of people such that all are treated well and share in the benefits of the joint enterprise", then work from there.

[vetuste_ennemi]

It should embrace the decent Marxist principle "From each according to his ability, to each according to his need". But needs also (for very practical reasons - like can we afford it?) to recognise that there's a large and increasing proportion of our population (imported and home grown) which prefers to define itself as demanding of help rather than ready and able to give.

[sevenOP]

"I am sixty in a few days time. I've seen it twice in my life in this country. Each time it is worse. The next time will be the grand finale of the triumph of our blinkered populist idealism over global realism."

What have you seen twice Colmc54 ?

[Colmc54]

1-The downfall of the Callaghan government in 1976.
2- The downfall of the brown government in 2010.

[Colmc54]

Our present chancellor once proposed that perhaps we could move towards a money rental rather than paying back relationship with the creditor nations with his idea of a '100 year bond'. Our debts are now so enormous that I remember hearing that around 25% of our borrowing (through the issue of 1yr-10yr bonds is being spent on paying off the expiring bonds.

One way or another, all we are doing, despite austerity and the progress in reducing our budget deficit, is keeping the interest rate on our bond issues low while our borrowing from the rest of the world continues.

[sevenOP]

Thanks for your answer Colmc54, gives me an idea of what you are talking about.

The selfish expectation of the permanent right to a standard of living we demand, but using other peoples cash to enable it.

“Blessed are the young, for they shall inherit the national debt” – Herbert Hoover, 1936

http://www.if.org.uk/archives/4171/the-british-national-debt-how-did-we-get-here

[Colmc54]

Nice one sevenOP with the Hoover quote.

According to the SNP and others elsewhere job 'creation' is an important part of the concept of 'social justice' they are try to sell us.

I just hope young voters realise they will see their improved job prospects accompanied by higher taxes, and a higher level of state borrowing that they will of course stand to inherit. Then, as before- it won't work anyway!