Response to Rick on Inequality

Rick -- I agree that absolute well being is important, and I completely agree with you that Cowen is correct to insist that we consider it (and consider it to be very important).  But I don't think that was his only point, at least not as I read his op-ed.  He makes pretty clear that his focus on absolute well being is exclusive of any real concern with inequality as such (hence his point about life not being a race against others, a zero sum game, and his question about why we should worry about it at all). My goal in discussing Sen was primarily to make the point -- often overlooked -- that a conern with inequality as such is not inconsistent with a concern about absolute standards of living (and vice versa).