What does " with respect to relevant outcomes" mean? Being a powerful, free individual actually means being able to demand an economic system that respects, rather than exploits, workers and the envir

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What does " with respect to relevant outcomes" mean? Being a powerful, free individual actually means being able to demand an economic system that respects, rather than exploits, workers and the environment, not being able to choose between an infinite number of coffee flavors and styles. Benjamin Barber writes in Consumed, "We are seduced into thinking that the right to choose from a menu is the essence of liberty, but with respect to relevant outcomes the real power, and hence the real freedom, is in the determination of what is on the menu. The powerful are those who set the agenda, not those who choose from the alternatives it offers." And the places where we enact our real freedoms to define what's on the menu and set the agenda--those places are our town halls and community meetings, the offices of elected officials, the op-ed pages*1 of newspapers, and sometimes simply the streets--not the aisles of shopping markets or the counters of coffee shops. What does " with respect to relevant outcomes" mean?

Jul 23, 2014 10:39 AM

Answers · 19

To make it even more concrete, let's look at an example. If you care about healthy eating, the outcome that really matters is your health. If the fast chain gives you a menu fried food, then your choice is limited, and you will always end up being unhealthy, whichever dish you choose, and however carefully you choose. The real problem is in the menu, not in your choice. The persons who set the menu has deprived you of a healthy choice even before you choose. This is a food and health example. You can think of social, education and political examples as well.

July 23, 2014

It more or less means, "looking from the perspective where the results really matter."

July 23, 2014

It means, "looking at the results/consequences that matter". Here the results/consequences flow from the choice the people make. This is a powerful passage, and points to the crux of the matter in many social and political issues.

July 23, 2014