Beauchamp recently argues that Persson and Savulescu's project of moral enhancement will exacerbate existing distributive unfairness. That is, the programme aiming to increase persons' sympathy and other relevant emotional components of moral sense that are believed to help create a better future will actually lead to a worse situation. Beauchamp admonishes that the moral enhancement programme may like other enhancements which are so limited that only the affluent can enjoy the benefits of being enhanced, hence increasing inequalities.

This worry seems to completely miss the point. Even if the moral enhancement programme cannot equally apply to every individual, in a world prevailed by capitalism, it still seems utterly great if some of the affluent would like to join the programme. Since the moral enhancement will enhance their sympathy towards other individuals in the society, including the poor and the need, those who can afford and are willing to participate in the enhancement will probably try harder to ameliorating the unjust distribution of resources.

It is true that physical or cognitive enhancement, if only available to the rich, may increase the existing unfairness. Yet, due to the nature of the moral enhancement, it's difficult to take seriously Beauchamp's worry that moral enhancement may aggravate existing social prejudices and distributive unfairness.

Conflict of Interest:

None declared