This is a good point. I address it a little in the longer post, but not much.
I think you’re right in that social challenges are still a very real emotional driver. But they are a way different level of stress than “if I am overthrown, they’ll torture me and my family to death.”
To some degree, I think those social challenges actually work in favor of good outcomes. The ASI will know that beatings do not, in fact, improve morale. So the most straightforward way to get a lot of good opinions is to produce a lot of very good outcomes that give people what they want.
Or if they want to, they can have the ASI engineer a way to force everyone to think very highly of them. That doesn’t need to be very harmful in itself. But that seems to be a bit out of line with the social drive to get people to approve of you.
Maybe your point is that while this person won’t be in competition for material well-being, the primary competition in a lot of people’s lives is for social standing, and that could still be a factor.
I think that’s right, and it’s another concern. Being a horrible person isn’t a good way to win most social status games, but it is a way to win some of them with some crowds.
This is a good point. I address it a little in the longer post, but not much. I think you’re right in that social challenges are still a very real emotional driver. But they are a way different level of stress than “if I am overthrown, they’ll torture me and my family to death.” To some degree, I think those social challenges actually work in favor of good outcomes. The ASI will know that beatings do not, in fact, improve morale. So the most straightforward way to get a lot of good opinions is to produce a lot of very good outcomes that give people what they want.
Or if they want to, they can have the ASI engineer a way to force everyone to think very highly of them. That doesn’t need to be very harmful in itself. But that seems to be a bit out of line with the social drive to get people to approve of you.
Maybe your point is that while this person won’t be in competition for material well-being, the primary competition in a lot of people’s lives is for social standing, and that could still be a factor. I think that’s right, and it’s another concern. Being a horrible person isn’t a good way to win most social status games, but it is a way to win some of them with some crowds.