gjm comments on Rationality test: Vote for trump - Less Wrong

-18 Post author: pwno 16 June 2016 08:33AM

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Comment author: Val 23 June 2016 07:07:19PM 0 points [-]

And why should we be utility maximization agents?

Assume the following situation. You are very rich. You meet a poor old lady in a dark alley who carries a purse with her, with some money which is a lot from her perspective. Maybe it's all her savings, maybe she just got lucky once and received it as a gift or as alms. If you mug her, nobody will ever find it out and you get to keep that money. Would you do it? As a utility maximization agent, based on what you just wrote, you should.

Would you?

Comment author: gjm 23 June 2016 07:39:10PM -2 points [-]

As a utility maximization agent, based on what you just wrote, you should.

Only if your utility function gives negligible weight to her welfare. Having a utility function is not at all the same thing as being wholly selfish.

(Also, your scenario is unrealistic; you couldn't really be sure of not getting caught. If you're very rich, the probability of getting caught doesn't have to be very large to make this an expected loss even from a purely selfish point of view.)