One of the things about the online debate over e-piracy that particularly galled me was the blithe assumption by some of my opponents that the human race is a pack of slavering would-be thieves held (barely) in check by the fear of prison sentences.
Oh, hogwash.
Sure, sure - if presented with a real "Devil's bargain," most people will at least be tempted. Eternal life. . . a million dollars found lying in the woods. . .
Heh. Many fine stories have been written on the subject! But how many people, in the real world, are going to be tempted to steal a few bucks?
-- Introducing the Baen Free Library, Eric Flint
(Which I can no longer find at Baen, but copies are scattered across the internet, including here)
How is this a rationality quote? I can see people thinking this is a good argument, especially if you politically agreed with the author, but it doesn't seem to be about rationality, or demonstrating an unusually great deal of rationality
Another month, another rationality quotes thread. The rules are: