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> It's striking that the Bread and Games of the Roman Empire works out so well even today after that many more people are are comparatively well educated and sh

> It's striking that the Bread and Games of the Roman Empire works out so well even today after that many more people are are comparatively well educated and should know better. What would you expect people to do? Most people want a peaceful life with their friends and family, passing their time pleasantly until they die. Sure, it would be nice to be a billionaire, but most people don't want that enough to do much about it (and rightly so, in my opinion, since the utility of money decreases rapidly the more you have). Your comment implies a critique of what people want, but I can't make out a suggestion of what they should want instead. Yes, it would be great if more people were richer, yes, we should make that happen, but no, being a billionaire isn't really worth pursuing when you can be very happy with much less and without sacrificing two decades in the process for a shot at a lottery ticket.

asdfman123 7y ago
> What would you expect people to do? Most people want a peaceful life with their friends and family, passing their time pleasantly until they die. No they don't. Most people want success and to follow their passions when they're young, get knocked around a few times by life, get older and decide to chill out and focus on building their families instead. They learn to be happy with what life has given them, which is generally a good thing, but it does not mean it's the only thing they've ever wanted.
- slothtrop 7y ago
  The truth is somewhere in between. Despite rationalizing some lofty goals our choices reflect a bias towards comfortable, passive leisure. Success is complicated when food, lodging and procreation are already achieved. It's a lot of work for a mere peace of mind that some arbitrary milestones are achieved and these may not be a passion either. Perhaps there is a mass passification about, and yet many individuals still manage to do great things growing up in these environments.

asdfman123 7y ago

> What would you expect people to do? Most people want a peaceful life with their friends and family, passing their time pleasantly until they die. No they don't. Most people want success and to follow their passions when they're young, get knocked around a few times by life, get older and decide to chill out and focus on building their families instead. They learn to be happy with what life has given them, which is generally a good thing, but it does not mean it's the only thing they've ever wanted.

slothtrop 7y ago
The truth is somewhere in between. Despite rationalizing some lofty goals our choices reflect a bias towards comfortable, passive leisure. Success is complicated when food, lodging and procreation are already achieved. It's a lot of work for a mere peace of mind that some arbitrary milestones are achieved and these may not be a passion either. Perhaps there is a mass passification about, and yet many individuals still manage to do great things growing up in these environments.