In " What Money Can't Buy ," Michael J. Sandel attacks the value issue as a philosopher. Ideally, the job of a philosopher is to make us think more clearly about critical issues. As a philosopher, Sandel doesn't offer definitive answers. His business is to ask the right questions, clarify the terminology and provide "edge cases." If  you watch Sandel's lectures on Justice , you will get a taste of his process: A "Socratic" moderation of discussions about what is right and why. Sandel looks for "edge cases" and questions our vocabulary. The result is penetrating insight into the subject that pushes aside much of the discussion that assumes that justice can be achieved by tweaking the economy. Economics, especially since it embraced the concept of "incentives" has abandoned the pretense of moral neutrality. Specifically, economics is seen in the light of political philosophy. Economic theories are thinly veiled  poli...