a pragmatic calculus, once offered, has to be considered in full. After all, it must be conceded, under some circumstances affirmative action can increase racial animosities, reduce standards in hiring and admissions, and damage the self-respect of its beneficiaries. To argue for affirmative action simply in pragmatic terms thus opens its various programs to cost-benefit calculations. Without a larger context of principles and priorities, it usually proves impossible to sort out when a system of preferences is compelling and when it is not.
