India, May 9 -- The title of this article might sound a little controversial, but it is the reality. The entire idea of achieving an optimal outcome is a distant dream. This applies to power in international relations, the reason communism failed, and why we have been unable to eradicate poverty despite an abundance of resources. Selfish behaviour will invariably lead to a sub-optimal outcome, which is why it is unrealistic to glorify the utopian idea of equality. The contours of the political landscape have decisively altered, and the decline of the Communist Left Front was inevitable.

To illuminate this peculiar truth and an unconventional view, one must understand the Prisoner's Dilemma and its application in the real world. Here is t...