In small ancestral groups with short practical time horizons, violence could appear advantageous. Modern societies extend horizons and embed choices in institutions (banks, courts, employment), so repeated interactions and enforcement make cooperation far more rewarding than violence. Cheering political violence is thus a strategic error even for its supporters.
— This reframes post‑assassination reactions and political radicalization by showing why violence undermines interests in complex, institutional democracies.
Arnold Kling
2025.09.24
70% relevant
Lionel Page argues that modern life extends practical time horizons and raises the costs of violence to perpetrators, implying our attraction to political violence is miscalibrated to ancestral conditions—directly echoing the mismatch framing.
Lionel Page
2025.09.18
100% relevant
Lionel Page’s post applies the Folk Theorem, longer life expectancy, and modern institutions to explain why reactions celebrating Charlie Kirk’s assassination are misguided.
← Back to All Ideas