In practical terms, he comes under fire for defending desert as a principle of social justice. A deterministic view of the world leads to the conclusion that we are not responsible for our skills, talents or abilities (including our ability to work to improve any natural talents) therefore it is unjust to be rewarded for them. Of course, if determinism is rejected, then the idea of morally valued "merit" can have intellectual "merit". Many argue that meritocracy is a fundamental principle of the United States and to reject this idea is to vitiate our society of one of its core values. Rawls merely asserts his position on merit. The opposite position can also be, just as legitimately and with as much intellectual support, asserted. Miller proposes that desert can be allocated through a strictly controlled market (to limit too much inequality). But others say that the objects or talents that the 'market' (that is, society) put economic value upon is not a just way to determine what is deserving.
