 However, the fact that subjective well-being can be measured does not imply that it ought to be taken as the metric of social evaluation. Surprisingly, the literature on happiness refers very little to the lively philosophical debates of the previous decades about welfarism, and in particular the criticisms raised by Rawls (1982) and Sen (1985) against utilitarianism. (Two exceptions are Burchardt (2006) and Schokkaert (2007). Layard (2005) also mentions and quickly rebuts some of the arguments against welfarism.) Nonetheless, one of the key elements of that earlier debate, namely, the fact that subjective adaptation is likely to hide objective inequalities, shows up in the data, challenging happiness specialists. Subjective well-being seems relatively immune in the long run to many aspects of objective circumstances, individuals displaying a remarkable ability to adapt. After most important life events, satisfaction returns to its usual level and the various affects return to their usual frequency. If subjective well-being is not so sensitive to objective circumstances, should we stop caring about inequalities, safety, and productivity?