Justice: What's a Fair Start?

Philosophy
5/8.
The fifth of Harvard professor Michael Sandel's lectures on the philosophy of justice focuses on a simple but controversial question - is it just to tax the rich to help the poor?
The American philosopher John Rawls argued that in order to work out a fair social system, one must start from an imaginary position where everyone has the same opportunity to succeed in life. But is this ever possible in the real world?
Sandel polls his students to find out how many of them are first-borns, and makes an intriguing discovery.
* First broadcast: BBC Four, 8:30PM Tuesday, 22 February, 2011