Trading for Satisfaction

Column for week of November 10, 2014

     We have considered how everyone's goal is to
maximize their satisfaction.  Also we have observed that
individuals won't change the choices they make unless we
block their chosen road to satisfaction, or they find what they
believe is a better road.  Our consideration also included some
of the ways individuals can try to influence others in their
pursuit of satisfaction.  We will now consider trading
satisfactions.

     Last time Fred was trying to influence Erwin to refrain
from eating a candy bar.  We saw that merely arguing or
debating with Erwin could easily fail to influence him to
refrain from eating the candy.  Does Fred have another string
on his bow?

     Fred might try to make an offer Erwin couldn't resist. 
Suppose Fred offered Erwin a new car in exchange for the
candy bar.  What are the chances that Erwin would pass up the
satisfaction from a new car for the satisfaction of eating the
candy?

     You might ask, Why would Fred offer a car for a candy
bar?   Whether he would or not isn't important.  As in the old
joke, we have established that Erwin has a price.  At most we
now quibble over how low that price will go.

     Some reward of alternate satisfaction will be enough to
get Erwin to give up the candy bar.  As the saying goes,
everyone has a  price.  That price may not be measured in
dollars.  Yet, there are few satisfactions that individuals will
not give up for the right exchange.  The robber's victim gives
up his money for his life.

     Most of our exchanges aren't that extreme.  Yet, we
endlessly give up one satisfaction for another.  We trade free
time and effort for wages.  Those money wages aren't what we
want.  We want the satisfaction we hope to gain from the
things we trade the wages for.  The money wages are only
coupons we hope to exchange for satisfying things.

     By offering trades we constantly influence others to
give up a lesser satisfaction for a greater one.  The merchant
gives up the satisfaction offered by a loaf of bread because he
expects to gain more satisfaction from the two dollars he
receives.  At the same time, the buyer expects more satisfaction
from the bread.  In fact, he expects more satisfaction from the
bread than from any other thing he could buy with the two
dollars.   If something else promised more satisfaction, he
would buy it instead of the bread.

     We also trade satisfactions over time.  He who saves
the candy bar to eat tomorrow instead of now believes he will
gain more satisfaction by doing it.  The person who saves to
spend later is trying to trade present satisfaction for future
satisfaction.  The ways we trade lesser satisfactions for greater
ones are almost endless.

     Rewards have so much potential for increasing
satisfaction that they should be our first resort when trying to
influence the choices of others.  Unfortunately many turn first
to the force of government.  Exchange and rewards create
winners.  Government's use of force and threats creates victims
and losers.  The victims are coerced into reduced satisfaction. 
Someone has to pay for the coercion.  The effort spent on
coercion produces no value except for the person who gains
satisfaction from dominating others.

     The person coerced to give up a satisfaction to satisfy
someone else sacrifices his satisfaction to satisfy the other
person.  The one coerced is partially enslaved by the one he is
coerced to serve.  If total slavery is wrong and bad, How can
partial slavery be right and good?

     Next time:  What happens when free people trade
satisfactions?

aldmccallum@gmail.com
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Copyright 2014
Albert D. McCallum