I had lunch a few months ago with a friend, and she told me how exciting it had been for her to attend a TED talk, live.

I can’t remember whom she saw, but she glowed with the recent experience. She reported that the speaker began by referring to a classic philosophical question. It wasn’t the prisoner’s dilemma but it was nearly as familiar, and of course it evoked thought and provided perspective.

She said the speaker asked the audience to indicate how many had an opinion about the philosophical question, and almost no hands went up. He asked how many had opinions about their cellphone features and contracts. The auditorium sprouted a field of raised hands.

My interlocutor then looked at me, meaningfully. I sputtered. “That’s a form of manipulation!” I choked out around my wine. “Really. It’s not fair.”

“What do you mean? I thought the point he made was brilliant.”

“Look: it would be lovely if we were all thoughtful and had philosophical opinions and a yen for wisdom. Of course. But do such attributes contribute to one’s survival success? I don’t think so. Whereas it might be important – what kind of gear you have – in an emergency.

“Viewed that way,” I continued (I was on a roll), “it’s not at all surprising that everyone would be plugged into gear and commodities, and not so much into truth and wisdom. I’m not accusing that audience. But I may be indicting God.”

She had no recourse but to drink her own wine.