In a message dated 10/10/99 11:03:09 PM Pacific Daylight Time, rowen@technologist.com writes:
> I would want to know the motivation of this "respect for the rights of
> others" in order to predict the individual's behavior in a "two men in
> a boat with one coconut" situation. How likely is it that he would not
> optimize his survival chances by rejecting sharing. Remember, that
> in a "state of nature", i.e. where neither Government nor Law nor
> institutionalized enforcement of Law exists "Might makes Right" is
> the prevalent ethic. In terms of the case you describe, I predict
> he would seize the coconut and throw the other man overboard if
> superior in physical strength.
what? and waste all that valuable protien? ;)
> Now there is something called a "hedonistic calculus" to describe the
> cunning displayed by an asocial individual (just as some autistic adults
> have learned to impersonate emotional states and pretend to feel
> the feelings of others) who is shrewd enough to realize that it is
> in his best interests to avoid the APPEARANCE of selfishness and that
> displaying the respect you describe is the easiest way to induce the
> cooperation of others. The is NOT a morally-significant "respect" --
> it is simply a case of an unstable symbiosis which in an emergency
> can deteriorate to parasitism and finally cannibalism.
"hi / im not in love / but / ill shrug and fuck you / till / somebody better / comes along" -- you get 3 points if you know who wrote that ;)
sayke, v2.3.05