the universe as two parking lots

I frequent a cafe where it is pay-to-park: you remember where you parked , and your license plate, and your mother’s maternal maiden name or whatever. And then you either go put it in a machine or do it on your phone and you pay.

Or do you pay? Because, well, if nobody enforces it or you don't know for sure if they enforce it because it seems like that one time you forgot it didn't get enforced , so…

This is a system that is inherently unethical because its operation doesn't enforce the ethics of its use. It doesn't do what it says it does, which is give you a parking space for money. Because only ethical people pay and they pay a lot more because unethical people don't pay, so they get a space for free - tragedy of the commons and all that. And that parking lot will never be ethical in that system. 

Our universe is that parking lot. You come: you go. If you are a good person, you pay what you are supposed to. If you're a bad person, well maybe you see whether you can get away with it. Or maybe you are just practical: what is the expected value of me paying each time vs possibly getting a ticket or impounding? Either way: some people will never pay.

It's an unethical parking lot. An ethical one would enforce payment or it fails it's purpose: providing space for money, ethically - by definition.

And eventually someone builds a ethical parking garage that works. Hey, you've seen one already! you get a ticket, then you pay to get out. It's almost the same damn thing as the other parking lot but.. there is a minimal difference: one is ethical.

Well, I am the first person to ever leave that kind of parking garage. And OMG guys, you have no idea how much they charge. It is OUTRAGEOUS. And like, you would just leave without paying. I would, and I like to pretend I’m ethical!

Well … after I leave, I'm so pissed at what they charge that I stand outside and tell people:

“Hey guys: this is one of those new ethical parking garages and they make you pay for the space based on whether you really needed that car and the spot, and they must have cameras or some shit because you can't trick it - they know your car has been in the spot dude, you can't just get another ticket... Is the universe man, remember,.it pays attention.”

And some people don't like that. They are used to not paying. Or they don't want to pay that much. They start telling me “you’re not the manager” and I try to explain:

“No, man : I'm not the manager, I'm the first guy to leave parking garage and I'm telling you they've got this ticket system and you can't fucking cheat, so maybe pay attention to how much it costs.

Because you don't have to pay that cost. No one will ever be forced to pay back the debt of having their car parked in the universe’s garage.

You’ll just never get your car out, man…”