The Law of Conservation of Goodness and Happiness

[etherealsoul]

But then I remembered the Law of Conservation of Goodness and Happiness, which supposes that goodness and happiness such as you describe are rare and fragile, and when they are found all care must be taken to protect and conserve them. In one sense this law is a pessimistic view, as it recognizes that there are real limits to our good fortune; it sets a possible future against a known present and asks, Is it worth destroying what we have to risk gaining some unknown and possibly greater good? It does not take the view that we cannot achieve happiness; it only says that, like certain species of plants and animals, happiness, once discovered, ought to be carefully preserved.

http://www.salon.com/mwt/col/tenn/2005/08/31/conservation_of_happiness/index.html?sid=1383606