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Comment by magpi3 | Hacker News Reader

Perhaps scarcity is the reason why humanity hates to share. But in a post-scarcity world, I imagine later generations used to that level of security (and with no memory of scarcity) might begin to think differently. I do agree that the first-generation that experiences post-scarcity won't change their habits a wit.

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Well, we already have generations of ultra wealthy who essentially have lived post scarcity life. They don't seem so eager to share their wealth, quite the opposite even.

Their wealth is scarce in that they can't share it endlessly. No one is ultra-wealthy enough to say, "I'm going to give $1 million to random people so that people don't have to suffer anymore. That's a critical difference.

If it was in human nature to start sharing once you've hoarded enough, we would certainly start seeing it with our billionaire class. Instead, we're seeing the opposite. I think it's even been studied that the more wealth you have, the more selfish you become.

Plus, of course the physical limitation that no one can ever be rich enough to share endlessly.

When we talk about after scarcity, we're talking about an endlessly sharable amount of wealth. (Not in a technical sense, of course)

Then the super-rich will start sharing their wealth, because if they don't, their competitors will do it first and take all the fame. It is not from the benevolence of the super-rich, the butcher, the brewer, or the baker that we expect our dinner, but from their regard to their own interest.

> their competitors will do it first and take all the fame.

I don't think I'll be holding my breath waiting for ultra rich to be motivated by fame of this type. In fact, I think it's wishful thinking in its finest form.

Too subtle. Most readers probably won't recognize you were quoting Adam Smith there.

> Well, we already have generations of ultra wealthy who essentially have lived post scarcity life.

They live a post-scarcity life, but not everyone does -- or can (probably, still). Once everyone could, the greedy hoarder mentality they (and pretty much all of us) operate under right now might (hopefully?) come to be seen as pathological, not ideal.

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