Re: Ethics

Daniel Fabulich (daniel.fabulich@yale.edu)
Wed, 15 Jul 1998 23:18:14 -0400 (EDT)

On 15 Jul 1998, Felix Ungman wrote:

> It's not egoism that is wrong. You can't blame anyone for being an
> egoist. It's the prisoner's dilemma that should be avoided. In real
> world situations you often have some control over the rules of the game.
> If you choose a system (economical, social, political, etc.) based on
> ill-formed game theories, you'll get what you ask for.

Er, no kidding. I'm well aware of what a good idea it is to minimize the number of situations in which it is profitable in the long term to hurt others. However, we can only minimize this effect; we can never eliminate it entirely. (No utopia, remember?) In the meantime, we will still be better off to the extent that people are utilitarians rather than egoists.