In a thoroughly argued article, Adler and Sanchirico defend the view that egalitarianism is concerned not merely with the equalization of expected well-being (the ex ante approach) but also with the expected equalization of actual well-being (the ex post approach). The ex post approach that they defend dictates that when the policymaker faces uncertainty, she ought to care not merely about the equality of the prospects of well-being or maximization of the prospects of overall well-being, but also about the prospects of equality ex post. Under ex post egalitarianism, policies with uncertain outcomes ought to be judged (also) on the basis of the expected ex post equality that they generate; the more egalitarian the expected outcomes, the better the policy.
Volume 155 2006 Response