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As much as I agree with you, the harsh reality is that the people who do choose the money end up having disproportionate influence over how the world operates.

As much as I agree with you, the harsh reality is that the people who do choose the money end up having disproportionate influence over how the world operates. Money buys power. It's sort of like finding honesty in politics. The reason politicians are dishonest is because it works. It's just a bug in society, I guess.

ht85 7y ago
Maybe the bug is wishful thinking. Legitimizing things we view as positive even though rationally you can see why they would never happen. It's a nice bug. If enough people were guilty of having that mindset, maybe those nice things could make sense?
- OnlineGladiator 7y ago
  The bug is that in order to make a difference, you have to have power. But in order to have power, you have to compromise your character. And thus, you compromise your ability to make a difference. Obviously this is a wildly simplistic generalization, but it is a very powerful rule of thumb.
  - dromen 7y ago
    Sounds like learned helplessness to me. The only sensible inner practice I've found is refinement of character. It works both when practiced publicly and when practiced privately. And aspects of character can be built, sustained and recycled. Like anything.
    - OnlineGladiator 7y ago
      Once you're a billionaire, what incentive do you have to better yourself when you can just pay to change the world around you?
garmaine 7y ago
Counterpoint: I've taken the high road when I had the chance to compromise my principles and (maybe!) make a lot of money. And I ended up with a decent amount of money as a result. People with values look for and value other people with values, so it did open doors. Now I'm not rolling in cash as a result, but I'm quite comfortable. And I ended up much better than some of the cut throat people involved in that enterprise who lost the game of thrones and ended up with nothing.
- LordFast 7y ago
  I've always gone with my gut, which is nothing more than just common sense, and I've also been luckier more often than not. "Good enough" has been a highly rewarding concept for me.
dromen 7y ago
Those people actually become larger by virtue of occupying their minds with money. Numbers signify connections (groups) so it's just natural. It's a lack of exchange caused by lack of specificity of requests and a lack of discernment on the part of the hubs.
LordFast 7y ago
It works until it doesn't work anymore. Examples from mild to not-so-mild: Feds suing Bill; Madoff getting thrown in jail; Epstein losing his head. I get what you mean by "bug", but I think it's less of a bug, and more of just how things work, and if we could have perfect information, it'd most likely all make sense. At the end of the day, all of us are gonna have to choose our poison, because none of us are getting out of here alive. I think most people make the very reasonable choice to not end up in a situation where the past will come back to haunt them, since when it does come back it will be very difficult to control the how/when/where of it all.

ht85 7y ago

Maybe the bug is wishful thinking. Legitimizing things we view as positive even though rationally you can see why they would never happen. It's a nice bug. If enough people were guilty of having that mindset, maybe those nice things could make sense?

OnlineGladiator 7y ago
The bug is that in order to make a difference, you have to have power. But in order to have power, you have to compromise your character. And thus, you compromise your ability to make a difference. Obviously this is a wildly simplistic generalization, but it is a very powerful rule of thumb.
- dromen 7y ago
  Sounds like learned helplessness to me. The only sensible inner practice I've found is refinement of character. It works both when practiced publicly and when practiced privately. And aspects of character can be built, sustained and recycled. Like anything.
  - OnlineGladiator 7y ago
    Once you're a billionaire, what incentive do you have to better yourself when you can just pay to change the world around you?

garmaine 7y ago

Counterpoint: I've taken the high road when I had the chance to compromise my principles and (maybe!) make a lot of money. And I ended up with a decent amount of money as a result. People with values look for and value other people with values, so it did open doors. Now I'm not rolling in cash as a result, but I'm quite comfortable. And I ended up much better than some of the cut throat people involved in that enterprise who lost the game of thrones and ended up with nothing.

LordFast 7y ago
I've always gone with my gut, which is nothing more than just common sense, and I've also been luckier more often than not. "Good enough" has been a highly rewarding concept for me.

dromen 7y ago

Those people actually become larger by virtue of occupying their minds with money. Numbers signify connections (groups) so it's just natural. It's a lack of exchange caused by lack of specificity of requests and a lack of discernment on the part of the hubs.

LordFast 7y ago

It works until it doesn't work anymore. Examples from mild to not-so-mild: Feds suing Bill; Madoff getting thrown in jail; Epstein losing his head. I get what you mean by "bug", but I think it's less of a bug, and more of just how things work, and if we could have perfect information, it'd most likely all make sense. At the end of the day, all of us are gonna have to choose our poison, because none of us are getting out of here alive. I think most people make the very reasonable choice to not end up in a situation where the past will come back to haunt them, since when it does come back it will be very difficult to control the how/when/where of it all.