Keith Burgess-Jackson, J.D., Ph.D.

One of my Ethics students brought this column by Peter Singer to my attention. What's odd about it is that Singer is a utilitarian, but he makes a Kantian argument in favor of voting. The utilitarian asks, "What can I do to maximize overall utility?" The Kantian asks, "What if everyone did what I propose to do?" Voting is difficult to justify on utilitarian grounds. It is easy to justify on Kantian grounds. Does Singer not grasp the implications of his own normative ethical theory?