Overview

Wherever there’s a rule, there is someone with the power to apply or ignore it—or add to it, in the interest of justice. From enforcing chores to issuing life sentences, decision-makers deliver flawed and sometimes arbitrary outcomes. But is their use of discretion good or bad overall? As a society, should we seek to minimise or maximise discretion, with all its potential for bias and other kinds of human error? Reframing our understanding of justice and ethics, Barry Lam argues that while use of discretion can never be perfect, removing it has more problematic effects. Mandatory arrests and sentencing laws do not eliminate bias but corrupt the courtroom, institutionalise lying and bring about unjust and arbitrary results. Fewer Rules, Better People sheds new light on political debates about law and justice while preparing us for the imminent threat of discretion-less rule-enforcement by AI. A Norton Short

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9781324123354

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Reviews

""When regular people seem burdened by bureaucracy, and the powerful act as they choose, it’s worth asking whether we’ve forgotten what makes rules effective."" -- Joshua Rothman - The New Yorker ""In a slim, thoughtful book, a philosophy professor warns that liberalism’s tendency towards legalism can occlude moral judgment."" -- The Economist ""Valuable…"" -- Andrew Stark - The Wall Street Journal ""The suggestion that more rules makes life less fair is a little perverse, but in this punchy treatise, Lam makes the case elegantly."" -- Mischa Frankl-Duval - Financial Times

Discretion greases the wheels of our culture and can be a force for good... This is not just a philosophical discussion here. Decisions about discretion and how it's going to be deployed in a society have high stakes to them, and as [Lam notes], those high stakes have long long, many many years of consequences to them.--Kerri Miller, ""Big Books, Bold Ideas"" podcast I really enjoyed reading this book where Lam essentially comes to the defense of the concept of discretion... This is a thought-provoking position to take in a world where we associate rule following and rule enforcement with justice... And so, the idea that there could be a philosophical defense for the exception, or for giving individuals the right not to enforce a rule seems counterintuitive to the way any of us think about why we have laws and rules in the first place.--David Peña-Guzmán, ""Overthink"" podcast One of my favorite chapters was on sports and rules, which is always a source of constant and entertaining debate in sports media... a really good test case.--Dave Pizarro, ""Very Bad Wizards"" podcast A breath of fresh air in an increasingly bureaucratic world. Barry Lam's book encourages us to find a way to preserve our humanity in the face of bureaucracy and technology.--Sean Dorrance Kelly, Dean of Arts and Humanities at Harvard University and coauthor of All Things Shining A convincing case for rethinking inflexibility in rulemaking in favor of discretionary checks and balances.-- ""Kirkus Reviews"" Beautifully crafted. In a vivid study of the power of wise discretion, Barry Lam convincingly argues in favor of trusting human beings to make the right decisions when the stakes are high. A moving, transformative book.--Nick Riggle, author of This Beauty Everyone who cares about improving anything should read this book.--Scott Hershovitz, Director of the Law and Ethics Program at University of Michigan and the author of Nasty, Brutish, and Short In a slim, thoughtful book, a philosophy professor warns that liberalism's tendency towards legalism can occlude moral judgment.-- ""The Economist"" Lam argues that stricter rule enforcement does not lead to less biased outcomes than systems in which authority-holders enforce rules at their discretion, and warns against the encroachment of AI into decision-making roles.-- ""Publishers Weekly"" Mr. Lam has written a valuable book, reminding us that rules can't cover the innumerable differences between cases and shouldn't try to do so: Common rules for all are indeed better, leaving room for discretion. But discretion should remain wedded to our plural perspectives on the world, and those exercising it should refrain from insisting that theirs is the only way.--Andrew Stark ""Wall Street Journal"" Through sharp, fiery argument and vivid examples, Barry Lam brings to light the great undiagnosed disease of contemporary American life. This little book is a flaming arrow that hits its target.--Zena Hitz, author of Lost in Thought Whether dealing with referees, police officers, judges, IRS officials, or clerks at the DMV, I'll now remind myself that their discretion is to society's benefit. We just have to follow the 'no-asshole rule, ' making sure the wrong people aren't entrusted with discretion.--Aaron James, professor of philosophy at UC Irvine and best-selling author of Assholes: a Theory

A breath of fresh air in an increasingly bureaucratic world. Barry Lam's book encourages us to find a way to preserve our humanity in the face of bureaucracy and technology.--Sean Dorrance Kelly, Dean of Arts and Humanities at Harvard University and coauthor of All Things Shining A convincing case for rethinking inflexibility in rulemaking in favor of discretionary checks and balances.-- ""Kirkus Reviews"" Beautifully crafted. In a vivid study of the power of wise discretion, Barry Lam convincingly argues in favor of trusting human beings to make the right decisions when the stakes are high. A moving, transformative book.--Nick Riggle, author of This Beauty Everyone who cares about improving anything should read this book.--Scott Hershovitz, Director of the Law and Ethics Program at University of Michigan and the author of Nasty, Brutish, and Short In a slim, thoughtful book, a philosophy professor warns that liberalism's tendency towards legalism can occlude moral judgment.-- ""The Economist"" Lam argues that stricter rule enforcement does not lead to less biased outcomes than systems in which authority-holders enforce rules at their discretion, and warns against the encroachment of AI into decision-making roles.-- ""Publishers Weekly"" Mr. Lam has written a valuable book, reminding us that rules can't cover the innumerable differences between cases and shouldn't try to do so: Common rules for all are indeed better, leaving room for discretion. But discretion should remain wedded to our plural perspectives on the world, and those exercising it should refrain from insisting that theirs is the only way.--Andrew Stark ""Wall Street Journal"" Through sharp, fiery argument and vivid examples, Barry Lam brings to light the great undiagnosed disease of contemporary American life. This little book is a flaming arrow that hits its target.--Zena Hitz, author of Lost in Thought Whether dealing with referees, police officers, judges, IRS officials, or clerks at the DMV, I'll now remind myself that their discretion is to society's benefit. We just have to follow the 'no-asshole rule, ' making sure the wrong people aren't entrusted with discretion.--Aaron James, professor of philosophy at UC Irvine and best-selling author of Assholes: a Theory

Author Information

Barry Lam is a professor of philosophy at the University of California, Riverside, and the host and producer of the Hi-Phi Nation podcast for Slate, a show about the moral and philosophical issues implicated in science, law, and everyday life.

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