Emotion Archives: Game Theory Will Help You Forigve

In my fifth episode I talk about how forgiveness is instrumental to understanding Game Theory.

When most people think about Game Theory they only think about selfishness and the Nash Equilibrium (or the film "A Beautiful Mind"). The mathematical expression of choosing which option is best for you no matter what.

People often parade about the prisoners dilemma as an excuse for why you should be selfish when it comes to making decisions. Initially I was going to explain Game Theory through just that lens, because I wanted to make an episode that elicited a negative emotion.

Then as world events continued to get worse I felt that I couldn't make a video that some asshole would use to justify being an asshole.

I had to dig a little deeper into Game Theory, and was rewarded with a beautiful realization. Only being selfish is a dominant strategy only if the amount of "games" (wars, arguments, startups) being played is 1. If there is only 1 game then go ahead and be a dick, but the truth is that life is a series of games, and because of this, cooperation is key to achieving the best outcome.

Outside of the cold math of the Nash Equilibrium, the games you are playing are infinite, they happen every day, and your "opponents" have memories. If you betray people to serve your own ends, they will remember that the next time they enter an interaction (game) with you.

It was an uplifting revelation for me, and one I decided to run with in this video.

Whatever it takes to fight the arm-chair philosophers of the internet, who justify immoral behavior by half understanding complex theories!