If the genie merely alters the present to conform to your wishes, you can easily run into unintended consequences.
The other problem is that divining someone’s intent is tricky business. A person often has a dozen impulses at cross-purposes to one another and the interpretation of your wish will likely vary depending on how much sleep you got and what you had for lunch. There’s a sci-fi short story Oddy and Id that examines a curious case of a man with luck so amazing that the universe bends to satisfy him. I won’t spoil it, but I think it brings up a relevant point.
If the genie merely alters the present to conform to your wishes, you can easily run into unintended consequences.
The other problem is that divining someone’s intent is tricky business. A person often has a dozen impulses at cross-purposes to one another and the interpretation of your wish will likely vary depending on how much sleep you got and what you had for lunch. There’s a sci-fi short story Oddy and Id that examines a curious case of a man with luck so amazing that the universe bends to satisfy him. I won’t spoil it, but I think it brings up a relevant point.