It is a stable equilibrium, where the poverty causes the behavior, and the behavior causes the poverty. If most people changed their behavior at the same time, they might have reached a new equilibrium; but one person unilaterally changing their behavior is only going to hurt that person.
When people don’t steal from each other, the society becomes richer than when they steal from each other all the time. But if you decide that you are not going to steal anymore, but everyone else keeps stealing (from each other and from you), it will not make you richer.
The new equlibrium is not just “(most) people don’t steal”, because that would be too fragile; the thieves would have a clear advantage. It must be like “(most) people don’t steal, and the thieves get punished”. Even that is too simple, because who is going to punish the thieves? The thieves are probably going to fight back, so punishing them will be costly. So it must be like “(most) people don’t steal, and the thieves get punished, and the punishers get rewarded”, but then again, who is going to reward the punishers? And so on… Getting to the stable equilibrium is more difficult than it may seem.
When people don’t steal from each other, the society becomes richer than when they steal from each other all the time. But if you decide that you are not going to steal anymore, but everyone else keeps stealing (from each other and from you), it will not make you richer.
Only because of, and to the extent that, the ‘richer are robbed more’ part has that effect. But yes.
It is a stable equilibrium, where the poverty causes the behavior, and the behavior causes the poverty. If most people changed their behavior at the same time, they might have reached a new equilibrium; but one person unilaterally changing their behavior is only going to hurt that person.
When people don’t steal from each other, the society becomes richer than when they steal from each other all the time. But if you decide that you are not going to steal anymore, but everyone else keeps stealing (from each other and from you), it will not make you richer.
The new equlibrium is not just “(most) people don’t steal”, because that would be too fragile; the thieves would have a clear advantage. It must be like “(most) people don’t steal, and the thieves get punished”. Even that is too simple, because who is going to punish the thieves? The thieves are probably going to fight back, so punishing them will be costly. So it must be like “(most) people don’t steal, and the thieves get punished, and the punishers get rewarded”, but then again, who is going to reward the punishers? And so on… Getting to the stable equilibrium is more difficult than it may seem.
Only because of, and to the extent that, the ‘richer are robbed more’ part has that effect. But yes.