Is it necessary? I'm not saying a concept of justice ISN'T necessary for
cooperative social behavior, but I don't have any strong intuition that it
IS necessary either. As I understand capitalist dogma, rational
self-interest is sufficient to prompt everyone to produce, buy and sell
goods and services.
That reminds me of a possible snag in a stone-based society: How would you
pay for sex (or other labor intesive services)? Surely you wouldn't give
the sex worker custody of your stones (hurumph) for the duration of the
rendered service. S/he wouldn't have much use for them until later, but if
you traded a half-hour's worth of sex for the use of your stones for, say,
a week, then the stone's originator wouldn't have the option of removing
them from enterprises to which the sex worker might devote them. One of
the most attractive features of the stone-society is that it would obviate
the problem of people seeing their social capital invested in enterprises
to which they object.
I'm sure there's a tie-in with justice in that last paragraph, even though
it seems for all the world like I've drifted way off topic. Anyway, take
care. -KMO
Resistance is Futile.
http://www.missouri.edu/~c538128/