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mattnewport comments on Compartmentalization in epistemic and instrumental rationality - Less Wrong
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To me things and people I care about are those that I willingly expend some mental energy on every so often. So when I care about owning a sports car, every so often it would pop into my head, "Darn, I wish the car was cheaper". As it is unlikely to become so it would be an unfulfilled desire and taking up mental energy for no reason, I could spend that mental energy elsewhere.
Care is different from value. Does that explain what I meant?
I think I understand what you mean, I just don't think it's a good strategy to try to convince yourself you don't care about something because it is not currently attainable. A better alternative might be to think about what appeals to you about owning a sports car and consider if there are lower cost ways of getting some of the same benefits for example.
Oh, I agree. But once you have done so would it be a bad idea to say you no longer care about the sport's car?
Aside: I didn't mean to give the impression it was unattainable. The hypothetical still works if you've got 4 million dollars, you could buy a house and donate some money to xrisk charities, found companies or put it aside for retirement. All better things than the car.
If you want a sports car that implies that there is some point at which the best marginal use of your next 3 million dollars would be to buy the sports car. If there is no such point then it seems to me that you don't really want it in any meaningful sense.