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Pure Time Preference: Reply to Johansson and Rosenqvist
Author(s) -
Lowry Rosemary,
Peterson Martin
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
pacific philosophical quarterly
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.914
H-Index - 32
eISSN - 1468-0114
pISSN - 0279-0750
DOI - 10.1111/papq.12100
Subject(s) - argument (complex analysis) , value (mathematics) , philosophy , preference , epistemology , intrinsic value (animal ethics) , mathematical economics , psychology , economics , mathematics , microeconomics , statistics , environmental ethics , chemistry , biochemistry
Johansson and Rosenqvist reject our argument for the rational permissibility of pure time preferences (PTP). Johansson and Rosenqvist's main objection is that where two options, X and Y, have equal intrinsic value, there will be a reason to be indifferent between X and Y, and therefore a reason to not hold a PTP for X or Y. In this reply, we argue that if two options have equal intrinsic value, it does not follow that you have a reason to be indifferent. Rather, the two equally large intrinsic values cancel each other out, like two equal weights on kitchen scales.