''Free Market Fairness'' is a 2012 book of
political philosophy
Political philosophy or political theory is the philosophical study of government, addressing questions about the nature, scope, and legitimacy of public agents and institutions and the relationships between them. Its topics include politics, ...
written by
John Tomasi, former Professor of Political Philosophy at
Brown University. Tomasi presents the concept of "free market fairness" or "market democracy," a middle ground between
Friedrich Hayek
Friedrich August von Hayek ( , ; 8 May 189923 March 1992), often referred to by his initials F. A. Hayek, was an Austrian–British economist, legal theorist and philosopher who is best known for his defense of classical liberalism. Haye ...
and
John Rawls
John Bordley Rawls (; February 21, 1921 – November 24, 2002) was an American moral, legal and political philosopher in the liberal tradition. Rawls received both the Schock Prize for Logic and Philosophy and the National Humanities Medal in ...
's ideas. The book was widely reviewed.
Content
Tomasi looks at followers of
Friedrich Hayek
Friedrich August von Hayek ( , ; 8 May 189923 March 1992), often referred to by his initials F. A. Hayek, was an Austrian–British economist, legal theorist and philosopher who is best known for his defense of classical liberalism. Haye ...
on the right and
John Rawls
John Bordley Rawls (; February 21, 1921 – November 24, 2002) was an American moral, legal and political philosopher in the liberal tradition. Rawls received both the Schock Prize for Logic and Philosophy and the National Humanities Medal in ...
on the left, only to conclude that both views are not mutually exclusive.
[Richard N. Cooper]
Free Market Fairness
'' Foreign Affairs'', November/December 2012 Taken together, they can lead to "free market fairness" or "market democracy", whereby the government is not prescriptive, but makes sure opportunities are available to all.
Tomasi's
fusionist-inspired project combines a foundational commitment to social justice with a foundational commitment to private economic liberty. Tomasi calls this hybrid "market democracy" and he holds it up as a moral rival to familiar conceptions of social democratic justice. "Free Market Fairness" is a leading text of the movement known as "Bleeding Heart Libertarianism," which seeks to combine a commitment to economic liberty with a commitment to social justice.
Critical reception
Writing for ''
The Wall Street Journal
''The Wall Street Journal'' is an American business-focused, international daily newspaper based in New York City, with international editions also available in Chinese and Japanese. The ''Journal'', along with its Asian editions, is published ...
'', Adam Wolfson suggested, "Mr. Tomasi's book is emphatically a work of political theory, not a blueprint for political action, much less a catalog of policy solutions."
[Adam Wolfson]
Occupy Common Ground
''The Wall Street Journal'', March 29, 2012
In the peer-reviewed academic journal "Political Theory," Elizabeth Anderson describes "Free Market Fairness" as launching "a major research program - Market Democracy." Anderson writes, "market democracy offers a refreshing change from stale debates within libertarian and high liberal ideal theory. Tomasi is right to stress that the economy is an important domain of liberty wrongly denigrated by high liberals, as distributive justice has been wrongly denigrated by libertarians." In a review in the European journal "Res Publica," Alan Thomas calls Free Market Fairness "a landmark publication in political philosophy." Thomas writes "It deserves many readers for its clarity, intelligence, openness to the ideas of others and yet insistence that the classically liberal tradition deserves to be represented alongside the standard options in recent political philosophy."
[ Res Publica (2013) 12:381-385] In ''
The Financial Times
The ''Financial Times'' (''FT'') is a British daily newspaper printed in broadsheet and published digitally that focuses on business and economic current affairs. Based in London, England, the paper is owned by a Japanese holding company, Nik ...
'',
Samuel Brittan criticized this, adding, "Unfortunately the book does not live up to its splendid introduction."
[Samuel Brittan]
Free Market Fairness
''The Financial Times'', May 6, 2012 He concluded, "Tomasi describes free-market fairness as a research programme rather than a fixed dogma. There is clearly a lot more to research."
In ''Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews'', Andrew Koppelman, a Professor of Law at
Northwestern University
Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world.
Charte ...
, suggested, "Tomasi's book is a useful corrective to both Rawls and Hayek."
[Andrew Koppelman]
Book review: Free Market Fairness
''Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews'', May 5, 2012 However, he argued that Tomasi's ideas were at times unrealistic, warning, "Ideals can be dangerous if too far removed from the realities of human life."
Similarly, ''
The Boston Review'' published a nuanced review, commenting, "The book is written in a friendly, relaxed tone," but adding that his arguments were not "persuasive."
[Martin O'Neill, Thad Williamson]
Free Market Fairness
''The Boston Review'', November 5, 2012 They concluded by disagreeing with Tomasi, concluding, "The moral goods of exercising freedom through market activities would be more widely realized under a regime of Rawlsian property-owning democracy than under the sort of minimally regulated capitalism that Tomasi celebrates."
In the peer-reviewed academic journal ''
Critical Review: A Journal of Politics and Society'',
Mark Pennington, a Professor of Political Economy at
King's College, London
King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public university, public research university located in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of George IV of the United Kingdom, King G ...
suggests the book "offers a challenging and innovative case for classical liberalism."
[Mark Pennington, ealistic Idealism and Classical Liberalism: Evaluating Free Market Fairness ''Critical Review: A Journal of Politics and Society'', 08 Oct 2014] In another peer-reviewed academic journal, ''
The Journal of Politics
''The Journal of Politics'' is a peer-reviewed academic journal of political science established in 1939 and published quarterly (February, May, August and November) by University of Chicago Press on behalf of the Southern Political Science Associ ...
'', Eric MacGilvray, a Professor of Political Science at
Ohio State University
The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best publ ...
offered a similarly positive review, starting with "I find a lot to praise in Free Market Fairness."
[Eric MacGilvray]
''The Journal of Politics'', Volume 75, Issue 02, April 2013 He went on to critique Tomasi's use of the word "libertarian" as both pro-free market and "high liberal."
Moreover, in ''
The Mises Review
Ludwig von Mises Institute for Austrian Economics, or Mises Institute, is a libertarian nonprofit think tank headquartered in Auburn, Alabama, United States. It is named after the Austrian School economist Ludwig von Mises (1881–1973).
It wa ...
'', the journal of the libertarian think tank
Ludwig von Mises Institute
Ludwig von Mises Institute for Austrian Economics, or Mises Institute, is a libertarian nonprofit think tank headquartered in Auburn, Alabama, United States. It is named after the Austrian School economist Ludwig von Mises (1881–1973).
It ...
,
David Gordon praised the book, adding "every reader of his book will learn a great deal from it."
[David Gordon]
Free Market Fairness
, ''Mises Review'', Volume 18, Number 1, January 2012
Critical Symposia on Free Market Fairness have been hosted by "Bleeding Heart Libertarianism" (bleedingheartlibertarianism.com). The Journal of Politics, Critical Review, and Res Publica.
References
{{Reflist
2012 non-fiction books
Political books
Political philosophy
Conservative media in the United States
Princeton University Press books