It's not just my favourite TV show.
Every year I teach the prisoner's dilemma to social science students. The upshot of the dilemma is, if a person can reduce his/her own problems by screwing over someone else, what will they do. The best option collectively is for both to take care of each other, but the best option individually is for us to be selfish. And, we can never be sure that other people will take care of us in return. That the big stopper to many acts of kindness - a concern that the kindness will not be returned. But with an expectation of return, that's not so much kindness as a covert bargain without a clear agreement established. But even if there is an agreement, "I won't rip off you if you don't rip off me," sometimes people lie. And then we get burned.
Every year I teach the prisoner's dilemma to social science students. The upshot of the dilemma is, if a person can reduce his/her own problems by screwing over someone else, what will they do. The best option collectively is for both to take care of each other, but the best option individually is for us to be selfish. And, we can never be sure that other people will take care of us in return. That the big stopper to many acts of kindness - a concern that the kindness will not be returned. But with an expectation of return, that's not so much kindness as a covert bargain without a clear agreement established. But even if there is an agreement, "I won't rip off you if you don't rip off me," sometimes people lie. And then we get burned.
