That wasn't mockery. What stands out from your example and from the link is that TDT is supposed to do better than CDT because it refers to itself - and this is exactly the mechanism whereby the mind control victims in Quarantine achieve their freedom. I wasn't trying to make TDT look bizarre, I was just trying for an intuitive illustration of how it works.

In the case of playing PD against a copy of yourself, I would say the thought process is manifestly very similar to Egan's novel. Here we are, me and myself, in a situation where everything tells us we should defect. But by realizing the extent to which "we" are in control of the outcome, we find a reason to cooperate and get the higher payoff.