Sunday, April 4, 2010

picking one: fairer or better

pretty much everyone seems to wish for a fairer world, where we don't have people like us consuming 100 gallons of water a day, and others consuming 2.5 gallons a day. the latest from science news seem to tell us such a sense of fairness is a result of both genetic wiring and cultural upbringing, even though it doesn't seem to make sense on an individual level.

but then, pretty much everyone wants to be better than others too, whether it's better skilled, better possessions, better social position. even if not better/best, at the very least not the worst.

for the unenlightened, this is a pretty interesting trade-off.

how much betterness is one willing to forgo for a fairer world?