Millism

Millism describes the beliefs of the 19th century philosopher, political economist and Member of Parliament, John Stuart Mill. He believes that the individual ought to be free to do as they wish unless they cause harm to others, individuals are rational enough to make decisions about their well being, and that it is not a crime to harm oneself as long as the person doing so is not harming others. He favours the : "The only purpose for which power can be rightfully exercised over any member of a, against his will, is to prevent harm to others." He excuses those who are "incapable of self-government" from this principle, such as young children or those living in "backward states of society". He believes that "harms" may include acts of omission as well as acts of commission. Thus, failing to rescue a drowning child counts as a harmful act, as does failing to pay taxes, or failing to appear as a witness in court. He opposed slavery and supported and animal rights, and JS Mill can be considered among the earliest male proponents of gender equality.

Economic Beliefs
JS Mill's early economic philosophy was one of free markets. However, he accepted interventions in the economy, such as a tax on alcohol, if there were sufficient utilitarian grounds. He also accepted the principle of legislative intervention for the purpose of animal welfare. "The reasons for legal intervention in favour of children, apply not less strongly to the case of those unfortunate slaves and victims of the most brutal part of mankind, the lower animals." He originally believed that "equality of taxation" meant "equality of sacrifice" and that progressive taxation penalized those who worked harder and saved more and was therefore "a mild form of robbery". Given an equal tax rate regardless of income, Mill agreed that inheritance should be taxed. A utilitarian society would agree that everyone should be equal one way or another. Therefore, receiving inheritance would put one ahead of society unless taxed on the inheritance.

Later he altered his views toward a more  bent, adding chapters to his Principles of Political Economy in defense of a socialist outlook, and defending some socialist causes. Within this revised work he also made the radical proposal that the whole wage system be abolished in favor of a co-operative wage system. Nonetheless, some of his views on the idea of flat taxation remained, albeit altered in the third edition of the Principles of Political Economy to reflect a concern for differentiating restrictions on "unearned" incomes, which he favored, and those on "earned" incomes, which he did not favour.

Ethical Beliefs
Mill was one of the fathers of the ethical theory of Utilitarianism, the theory that holds that the most moral action is that which causes the least pain and creates the most pleasure for the largest number of people, which had been pioneered by Jeremy Bentham in 1769. However, Mill's Utilitarianism differs slightly from Bentham. Whereas Bentham argued that creating the maximum amount of pleasure should always be the objective, regardless of what kind of pleasure, Mill separated pleasure into what he called "higher" and "lower" pleasures. Into the camp of higher pleasures he put intellectual pursuits, such as looking at art or contemplating philosophy, and into the camp of lower pleasures he put more carnal desires, such as drinking alcohol and eating. Mill argued that higher pleasures were more desirable than lower ones, a belief that he encapsulated in the quote "Better to be Socrates dissatisfied than a fool satisfied.""Mill holds that “[a]ctions are right in proportion as they tend to promote happiness; wrong as they tend to produce the reverse of happiness.   By happiness is intended pleasure and the absence of pain; by unhappiness, pain and the privation of pleasure.” Straightforwardly then, since animals can feel pain and pleasure (which, unlike Descartes, Mill freely grants), then actions involving causing them pain can be ethically objectionable.   Mill ultimately envisions a universe free from pain “secured to all mankind; and not to them only, but, so far as the nature of things admits, to the whole sentient creation”.""''Granted that any practice causes more pain to animals than it gives pleasure to man; is that practice moral or immoral? And if, exactly in proportion as human beings raise their heads out of the slough of selfishness, they do not with one voice answer 'immoral', let the morality of the principle of utility be for ever condemned.''" — John Stuart Mill

Beliefs on freedom of expression
Mill a vocal proponent of free speech and a fierce critic of conformity. He was one of the first people to warn the newly democratic Britain of the "Tyranny of the Majority", where the majority is able to suppress and exert their will over the minority. He valued individuality highly and believed that the individual was sovereign over their own body and ideas. Mill also argued that it was important to maintain a profusion of ideas. He argued that society couldn't progress if radical ideas and lifestyles weren't allowed to be shared, but also that people needed to be willing to listen and consider ideas that directly contradicted their own. He imagined public discourse as a "bubbling cauldron of ideas", where ideas that were proven to work and made logical sense would rise to the top, while whose that didn't would fall to the bottom.

Friends

 * [[File:PCB-Utility.png]] Utilitarianism - My teacher showed me how this could make the world better.
 * [[File:PCB-Civbert.png]] - I invented the harm principle you know.
 * [[File:Clib.png]] - Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness!
 * [[File:Libfem.png]] - Women deserve the right to vote!
 * [[File:Radlib.png]] - He can go a bit to far, but he has the right idea.
 * [[File:Soclib.png]] - Oh look, I started this one to.
 * [[File:Liberalsoc.png]] - Me later in life.
 * [[File:Ricardosoc.png]] - Fellow classical liberal socialist.
 * [[File:PCB-Marketsoc.png]] - I eventually deiced this was the best economic system.

Frenemies

 * [[File:Statesoc.png]] - Why do you want to eliminate competition?
 * [[File:Cap.png]] - I used to be all for this, but you do tend to breed a lot of inequality.

Wikipedia
John Stuart Mill