MODULE 3

FREEDOM AS FOUNDATION
FOR MORAL ACTS
Who is Immanuel Kant?
KANT’S PHILOSOPHY ON FREEDOM AND MORALITY, THE PRINCIPLES OF
JUSTICE AND FAIRNESS

Freedom - is the right to control one's actions based on reason, not desire.
- this can be simplified to the definition of autonomy

Autonomy – derived from the Greek word which means self-legislator

The principle, then, is not to live by the animalistic rules forced on them from
birth, but rather to live by the laws that you enforce on yourself. From Kant's point of view,
libertarian freedom is not absolute, but in fact, it is the subjugation of oneself to one's wish.

There is only one inherent right, "says Kant," freedom (independence from being
limited by the option of another) to the degree that it can coexist with the freedom of each
other following universal law".
 In Theory and Practice, Kant makes equality the first of three
concepts:

• freedom of a human being as a member of state

• dignity of each person as a subject

• freedom of any member of the commonwealth as a resident

As discussed in “Theory and Practice” Freedom highlighted the

autonomous right of all individuals to conceive of happiness in their way.
 Immanuel Kant accentuates the following philosphy on freedom:

1. Individuals have the right to choose one's conduct based on reason, not
desire.

2. Individuals have to abide by the rules that they follow.

3. Individuals are independent from being limited by the option of others to

the extent that they may coexist with each other's freedom under universal
rule.
3. Equality is the most among the various freedoms and freedom is the only
inherent power. The three concepts of freedom are the freedom of a human
being as a member of a state, the dignity of each person as a subject, and the
freedom of any member of the commonwealth as a resident.

4. Individuals have an autonomous right to be happy in their own way, and the
intervention of another's freedom means forcing others to be happy.
Kant’s Philosophy on Morality
 Kant based his ethical philosophy on the idea that reason should be
used to decide how people will behave. Below are the main Kant’s
philosophy on morality.

1. GOOD WILL AND DUTY

• Good will is unique as it is always good and retains its moral
values even though it fails to achieve its moral intentions.

• Good will to be a common moral concept that openly wishes to

use certain virtues for moral purposes.

• Good will is a wider conception than the will of obligation

2. PERFECT AND IMPERFECTIONS
• Having applied the categorical imperative, duties emerge because
failure to perform them will either result in a contradiction of
conception or a contradiction of will.
• Imperfect duty requires flexibility.
• Kant believes that perfect duty is more important than an imperfect
duty: when a conflict of duty arises, perfect duty must be carried out.

3. CATEGORICAL IMPERATIVE
• command unconditionally
• binds us as everyone has a responsibility not to lie, regarless of
conditions and even though it is in our interest to do so.
4. UNIVERSALIZABILITY
• For Kant, an act is only permissible if one can have the principle that
allows an action to be the universal law by which everybody acts.
• "limit will inevitably ruin itself as soon as the universal law has been
created.”
• He, therefore, assumed that a perfectly rational being would also be
perfectly moral since a perfectly reasonable being feels it necessary to
do what is rationally necessary
• Kant claimed that humans had to comply with their subjective will
with objective rational rules, which he called conformity obligations
• According to Kant, therefore, objective morality is fundamental and
can not change depending on the circumstances.
5. HUMANITY AS AN END IN ITSELF
• second interpretation of Kant's Categorical Imperative is to view life
as an end in itself:

• Act in such a way that you treat humanity, whether in your own
person or in the person of another, always at the same time as an
end and never simply as a means.”

• it allows us to value reason as motivation in all beings, including

others
Kant’s Philosophy on Justice
and Fairness
 Kant’s corollary meaning of justice and fairness are the following:

1. Justice involves external acts through which an individual may directly

or indirectly influence others.

2. Justice does not affect the desires, wishes, or needs of others.

3. Justice is concerned primarily with the nature of interpersonal

relationships and not with their substance.
 TAXATION IN THE
PHILIPPINES THE RULES
EMBODIED UNDER THE LAW
 Taxation policy in the Philippines is regulated primarily by the
Constitution of the Philippines and the three Republic Acts.

1. Constitution: Article VI, Section 28 of the Constitution provides that "the

rules of taxation shall be uniform and equal" and that "a democratic
system of taxation shall be established by the Congress."

2. National law National Internal Revenue Code—enacted as Republic Act

No. 8424 or the Tax Reform Act of 1997 and subsequent laws amending it;
most recently, the Law of the Republic No. 10963 or the Law on Tax Reform
for Acceleration and Inclusion was amended
3. Local laws: the major sources of revenue for local government units (
LGUs) are taxes imposed under the Republic Act No. 7160 or the Local
Government Code of 1991 and those imposed on revenues levied under state
law.

4. Taxes levied at national level are collected by the Office of Internal

Revenue ( BIR), whereas those levied at local level ( i.e. provincial, city,
municipal and barangay) are collected by the Office of Internal Revenue (
BIR).