There are some religious traditions that view human beings as participants in creation. This is true of the Jewish tradition, from which I come.
Michael SandelAiming at giving our kids a competitive edge in a consumer society - that, in principle, is a goal that is limitless.
Michael SandelDemocracy does not require perfect equality, but it does require that citizens share in a common life.
Michael SandelIf parents are aiming at choosing children who will be good athletes, or great musicians, or who will get into Ivy League schools, or who will be tall enough to make the basketball team, then there is a danger that the life of the child will bear the burden of that expectation; and the risk of disappointment and the cost of disappointment will be even higher than they are now, and even now they can be considerable.
Michael SandelThe most fateful change that unfolded during the past three decades was not an increase in greed. It was the expansion of markets, and of market values, into spheres of life where they don’t belong.
Michael SandelSome parents expend great efforts to get their kids into the right nursery school or the right preschool, with the thought that that will set them on the path to success, to competitive success especially.
Michael SandelMy goal is first of all to promote a public debate about where markets serve the public good and where they don't belong. That's my first goal.
Michael SandelIt's true that to speak of an ethic of giftedness, which is very much the ethic that I deploy in raising questions about designer children and genetic engineering - an appreciation of the giftedness of the child or the giftedness of life does have religious resonance, because a great many religious traditions emphasize the sense in which the good things in life are not all our own doing; they are gifts from God.
Michael Sandel