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>Forms of human behavior survive because they have a competitive edge against other behaviors. Self-interested groups naturally tend towards what works, so bad

>Forms of human behavior survive because they have a competitive edge against other behaviors. Self-interested groups naturally tend towards what works, so bad drives out good (in a moral sense) if it causes superior practical effects. This is one large reason why forms of regulation and policing are needed in human systems, to prevent the Law from working its magic. I don't think that a requirement for regulation and policing follows from that. Regulation and policing can also be caught by these bad practices. Regulatory capture is an example of that. In my opinion, this suggests instead that we need irregular resets to the system. Wipe the slate clean and start building it up again. That does come with enormous cost, but it seems to me like it's the only way to truly stand against constant degradation without finding a way to counter the degradation.

fierarul 7y ago
Hm, death as a practical solution.
- magicsmoke 7y ago
  When you think about it, that's the direction most lifeforms on the planet take. Instead of trying ensure the survival of their genetic information by being immortal, they make younger copies of themselves with less degradation before dying. Immortality = eventual decline as more and more parts fail and can't be repaired.
  - TeMPOraL 7y ago
    It's a path evolution took staring from the first replicator; the "throw stuff at the wall and see what sticks" approach is built into the core of the evolutionary process. That doesn't mean the only solution is to burn the whole thing down and start anew. Partial replacement while preserving the whole could make sense, but it wasn't an option easily accessible to evolution. Then again, the life's approach isn't all bad on the lowest level. From our, human, point of view, the issue is that at some point, evolution invented brains and consciousness, and that information is more interesting than DNA, and it gets discarded instead of being preserved.
magicsmoke 7y ago
If you look at human history, that what tends to happen. Empires rise, go through a golden age, fall, and are overtaken by newer empires built on the carcasses of old ones.
itronitron 7y ago
I think mandatory attendance in grade school is a regulation that is interesting to consider in the context of Gresham's law. Is attendance mandatory so that the disruptive (bad) students don't drive out the good ones from attending, or does mandatory attendance create a situation that favors the bad student (by forcing them to attend) at an expense to the good student, who would have attended otherwise?
- TeMPOraL 7y ago
  Attendence is mandatory so that "bad" parents - bad usually because of circumstances, not ill will - do not pull their kids from schools and have them work or help around the house, reaping short-term benefits at the expense of their children's futures.

fierarul 7y ago

Hm, death as a practical solution.

magicsmoke 7y ago
When you think about it, that's the direction most lifeforms on the planet take. Instead of trying ensure the survival of their genetic information by being immortal, they make younger copies of themselves with less degradation before dying. Immortality = eventual decline as more and more parts fail and can't be repaired.
- TeMPOraL 7y ago
  It's a path evolution took staring from the first replicator; the "throw stuff at the wall and see what sticks" approach is built into the core of the evolutionary process. That doesn't mean the only solution is to burn the whole thing down and start anew. Partial replacement while preserving the whole could make sense, but it wasn't an option easily accessible to evolution. Then again, the life's approach isn't all bad on the lowest level. From our, human, point of view, the issue is that at some point, evolution invented brains and consciousness, and that information is more interesting than DNA, and it gets discarded instead of being preserved.

magicsmoke 7y ago

If you look at human history, that what tends to happen. Empires rise, go through a golden age, fall, and are overtaken by newer empires built on the carcasses of old ones.

itronitron 7y ago

I think mandatory attendance in grade school is a regulation that is interesting to consider in the context of Gresham's law. Is attendance mandatory so that the disruptive (bad) students don't drive out the good ones from attending, or does mandatory attendance create a situation that favors the bad student (by forcing them to attend) at an expense to the good student, who would have attended otherwise?

TeMPOraL 7y ago
Attendence is mandatory so that "bad" parents - bad usually because of circumstances, not ill will - do not pull their kids from schools and have them work or help around the house, reaping short-term benefits at the expense of their children's futures.