A very thought-provoking piece. But the key distinction between civilization and a classic Ponzi scheme is the element of scienter.

Every instance of fraud requires (1) a false representation (2) of a material fact (3) made with knowledge of its falsity (that’s scienter) (4) that causes (5) detrimental reliance.

The problem with analogizing civilization (or any of its constituent parts, like Social Security) to a Ponzi scheme is that there is generally no intent to deceive. Maybe the values and beliefs that underpin civilization are bullshit, but the vast majority of us, including those who stand in the position of the schemer, believe our own bullshit.

But I’m not sure it is all bullshit. We are by nature social animals, and value is built into our perception of our physical, ecological, and social world. The words we use to denote those values, unlike the things that embody them, appear to outlive us and transcend us, so we naturally symbolize them in stories about beings with supernatural qualities.

The stories are fictions, but the values they symbolize are ineradicable aspects of human nature, without which we could not experience the world as sentient beings. Whether those values merit our allegiance is a question that can never be answered definitively.