Leaf-blowers and Stadium Seating: Group vs. Individual Rationality

[devonin]

Well, I'm curious what you think are the root causes of the "me-first" behavior exhibited in the baseball example. I mean, you see it -everywhere- people pushing and shoving in line when an orderly line would actually move faster, and so on.

Part of me wants to think it is a throwback to when pretty much all aspects of life were competeing for quite limited resources, and you really see it in action during sales at stores etc.

When your concern is for your own benefit, you tend not to especially consider the effect of that action on other people. Sure you get a better view if you stand up and people behind you don't, but everyone behind -you- has someone in their way, which is what starts the cascade of everyone standing up.

It is an argument that people are inherently capitalistic, but I'd debate whether the situation arises because people are capitalistic by nature, or whether people become capitalistic by nature because the situation keeps arising where it is advantageous to be so.

Or more to the point, if you no longer -needed- to stand up to get a better view than others, would you still instinctively do it anyway?