There is a somewhat different political implication of the concept of negative utilitarianism. Popper's "negative utilitarian" principle is that we should act to minimise suffering rather than maximise pleasure. Popper believed that by acting to minimise suffering, we avoid the terrible risks of "utopianism", by which he had in mind the communist and fascist dictatorships of the twentieth century. "Those who promise us paradise on earth never produced anything but a hell." A staunch advocate of the "open society", Popper defended "piecemeal social engineering" rather than grandiose state planning. Popper is one of those philosophers who champion the cause of the end of ideology. To Popper rather than engaging in grand schemes, governments should deal with problems as and when they emerge, and respond to social or economic deficiencies in a practical, ad hoc manner.

Utilitarian spirit had a great impact on philosophical and economic thinking. For Bentham, communities are only the sum of the individuals. The idea of happiness eventually led to an important law in economics – the law of diminishing utility. According to this law, for a pauper any addition in the income is of great worth but beyond a certain level of income further addition of units of income adds to happiness in lesser and lesser quantity. Thus there is a justification for the redistribution of wealth on rational, empirical basis. Bentham maintained that labor is painful and the wages are simply the compensation for labor. He found the modern ideas of GDP etc. quite inadequate to measure utility and called on the intellectuals to measure people’s happiness in new ways.

There is a somewhat different political implication of the concept of negative utilitarianism. Popper's "negative utilitarian" principle is that we should act to minimise suffering rather than maximise pleasure. Popper believed that by acting to minimise suffering, we avoid the terrible risks of "utopianism", by which he had in mind the communist and fascist dictatorships of the twentieth century. "Those who promise us paradise on earth never produced anything but a hell." A staunch advocate of the "open society", Popper defended "piecemeal social engineering" rather than grandiose state planning. Popper is one of those philosophers who champion the cause of the end of ideology. To Popper rather than engaging in grand schemes, governments should deal with problems as and when they emerge, and respond to social or economic deficiencies in a practical, ad hoc manner.

Utilitarian spirit had a great impact on philosophical and economic thinking. For Bentham, communities are only the sum of the individuals. The idea of happiness eventually led to an important law in economics – the law of diminishing utility. According to this law, for a pauper any addition in the income is of great worth but beyond a certain level of income further addition of units of income adds to happiness in lesser and lesser quantity. Thus there is a justification for the redistribution of wealth on rational, empirical basis. Bentham maintained that labor is painful and the wages are simply the compensation for labor. He found the modern ideas of GDP etc. quite inadequate to measure utility and called on the intellectuals to measure people’s happiness in new ways.