The Economics of Woody Allen

Clearly the life of seducing young girls has worn thin on our "hero."

In fact, by the law of diminishing marginal utility, the average value of a year in a finite lifespan should be more valuable than the average value of a year in an infinite lifespan.

Huh?

Mortality and the desire for immortality is something about which I have thought quite a bit. Life as we know it would be quite impossible without death.

Let's just engage in a thought experiment. We are immortal. We cannot die. How would our life be different? What would life look like? Let's see... I could jump off a cliff, and still not die. I could stop eating, and still not die.... Okay, I kind of get the concept. So what are we going to do with ourselves? Well, we can travel, take classes in subjects I've always wanted to study, try out a new career, etc. Ok, after a few years/centuries of this, what else can I do?

One thing is certain, if humans cannot die, then we won't be able to reproduce much longer. Otherwise the world will be too crowded. This wouldn't pose any health risks or food production problems (we cannot die), but it would be uncomfortable after a certain point.

Let's see, what else would be different? Let's say I'm getting ready for work. I have to be on time for that 8 am conference call. Why do I have to be on time? No one is going anywhere. Tomorrow will come and go, and there will be plenty of time to get things done. I imagine the pace of our lives will slow down considerably. No hurrying around, no scrambling at the last minute.

But, really, there's no hurry in the least bit. What's the difference between getting the report done today, tomorrow, or 100 years from now? There's no impetus to do anything. No external pressure to meet deadlines.

Finally, what's my real motivation for most of what I do? There are some things I would like to see, to feel, to experience before I die. If I'm not going to die, there's little motivation. After several centuries, people will slow down and stop all their exploring, philandering, and fooling around. People will become very laid back.

Is this a world I want to live in? No, not really. Death is essential for life. It gives us a deadline. A real deadline. And this helps us to prioritize. It gives us a sense of time, a sense of urgency, a sense of importance. Death forces us to give our lives "meaning." In fact, death forces us to focus on those things we find most valuable. Someone once said "the wages of sin is death," and I disagree. Death is not income. It is a limit, and by this limit we measure our lives.

So what would life be like if we could live forever? I imagine there would be thought experiements about what life would be like if we could die.

Woody Allen had a much more humorous take on all this in his younger days.

In one of his 70's movies (Take the Money and Run, IIRC) he comes home from elementary school having learned that the Sun will become a red giant in about 4 billion years and then envelop the earth. Later that evening his mom asks why he's not doing his homework. "What's the use?", he replies.

People knowing that they have a definite period of life to live (like cancer patients) show no decrease in their interest for money. Even people without heirs will grab that dollar. Navegare necessita est, vivire etc.

As the old joke goes, the rising cost of living hasn't affected its popularity.

"Still, I have to admit that if I found out I only had a week to live, I probably wouldn't enjoy my last days very much."

If an optimist found out he only had a week to live, he might not enjoy it. If he found out he only had _a year_ to live, chances are he would feel bad a bout it for a few weeks, snap out of it, and finish strong. Deviation to the average.