Imagine a child living in a hot government-owned apartment in Chicago. He has no father. With his single, unemployed mother, he struggles to follow the words of the Founding Fathers: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with inherent and inalienable Rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness…” (The Declaration of Independence). It is one of the most famous phrases from the United States Declaration of Independence and has become the foundation of the dreams of millions of people around the world. Although the words are different, these sentiments are reflected in the political and economic policies of many democracies. Even though the notion of “happiness for all” seems to be the obvious solution to many of our persistent problems, we inevitably face conflicts between our actions and our morals. “The State is based on… the contradiction between public and private life, between universal and particular interests. For this reason, the state must limit itself to formal and negative activities. » (Marx, 1992). This essay focuses on issues of an important theory, utilitarianism, as it blends and encompasses the two areas of economics and ethics that have become the basis of our government agencies. In utilitarianism, the goal of our actions is to achieve happiness for the greatest number of people. . “Actions are good to the extent that they tend to promote happiness, bad to the extent that they tend to produce the opposite of happiness. » (Moulin, 1971). Utilitarianism appeals directly to human emotions and our reactions to different events. Emotions are a fundamental way of knowing and influence ethical and economic theories. In most cultures, there are fundamental theories for remaining stagnant and restrictive even as our economies, ethical systems, and societies change so radically before our eyes? Cited Brannigan, Jack. The purpose of life and the general theory of ethics. Nebraska, USA: iUniverse, 2005. The Declaration of Independence: A Transcription. Internet. June 14, 2015.http://www.archives.gov/exhibits/charters/declaration_transcript.htmlJenkins, author Joe. Ethics and religion. Oxford, UK: Heinemann Educational Publishers, 2003. Lagemaat, Richard van de. Theory of knowledge for the IB diploma. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 2005. Marx, Karl. First writings. London, UK: Penguin Classics, 1992. Rothbard, Murray N. Ethics of Liberty. New York, USA: New York University Press, 1998. Sen, Amartya. On ethics and economics. Oxford, UK: Blackwell Publishing, 1988.