Re: One NanoDream, Deconstructed

Dan Clemmensen (dgc@shirenet.com)
Mon, 30 Sep 1996 20:09:20 -0400


Robin Hanson wrote:
>
> Dan Clemmensen writes:
> >> Given all this, some folks seem to want to infer that at some point
> >> most living humans will fit the scenario of living off their own small
> >> plot of land, using basically free designs.
> >
> >Actually, given all this, anyone who wishes to do so may drop out
> >of the economy. I don't know what percentage will do so.
>
> People can drop out of the economy now, and have had this ability for
> a very long time. Surely you had a stronger claim in mind.
>

Yes I did. I'm a fairly lazy and disorganized person, and I tend to
believe
(probably incorrectly) that much of humanity falls into the same
category.
If I dropped out of the economy, I would not be able to enjoy a
comfortable
lifestyle today without effort. I assert that with MNT, I would be able
to enjoy a comfortable lifestyle without effort. The "without effort" is
the
difference. This means that I can spend my time doing what I want to do
to
satisfy myself, rather than doing what has the highest economic return.
Note
that today a person selects a job by making a tradeoff between
non-monetary
personal satisfaction and monetary gain. I assert that MNT will cause
this
tradeoff to shift entirely away from monetary gain for many people,
causing
them to effectively leave the economy.