> Prior to the rise of Rome, for example, average heights in regions that would subsequently fall under its yoke were increasing.
Agh no. Please don't use average utility (or its proxies like height or income) to evaluate societies. It matters how many people there are too! If disease wipes out half the population, and the remainder now has more to eat and grows taller, that is not a good thing.
Reading through that section, I was reminded of the old idea that upheaval sucks for anyone alive at the time, but it sure benefits the next generations born to the survivors/winners. If only those beneficiaries could, on the whole, absorb the lost knowledge and avoid the mistakes that led to the upheaval.
If it is good for Jim to be alive, given his level of utility, then why isn't it also good for Jane and George to be alive at the same level of utility?
Agh no. Please don't use average utility (or its proxies like height or income) to evaluate societies. It matters how many people there are too! If disease wipes out half the population, and the remainder now has more to eat and grows taller, that is not a good thing.