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Do you believe that most people act according to their own self-interest? Is acting only according to your self-interest a good strategy in life? (mander.xyz)

submitted 4 days ago* (last edited 4 days ago) by gay_sex@mander.xyz to c/asklemmy@lemmy.ml

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An argument can be made that all actions people take are for their own self-interest. Even things like helping the community is done for reciprocal benefits for yourself plus the general increase in respect.

Another point is that if all people just act for their own self-interest, they will have a better life themselves, and if everyone does the same, some sort of proper balance will be achieved.

I have been having some occasional discussions with my friends over this. I personally disagree, but would love to hear what others have to say. Feel free to discuss!

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[–] southsamurai@sh.itjust.works 1 points 3 days ago

Most people don't have the brain power to actually know what's in their best interest.

At most, they can handle very simple situations.

To really make choices in own best interest, your have to think long term, at a broad scale. Unfortunately, we can't see with certainty beyond maybe a few steps from our present time and place. So we would also have to think out layers of possibility with each decision.

If you can't do that quickly, you're fucked because you'll always be reacting instead of planning. Since even the smartest people on the planet can still only handle as much planning as a chess game takes, we're all fucked.

And yes, I'm including myself as not having the brain power to properly act in my own best interest long term. Being able to see the problem doesn't mean you're immune to it.