This example is a lie that could be classified as “aggression light” (because it maximises my utility at the expense of victim’s utility), whereas the examples in the post are trying to maximise other’s utility. What I find interesting is that the second example from the post (protecting Joe) almost fits your formula but it seems intuitively much more benign.
One of the reasons I feel better about lying to protect Joe is that there I maximise his utility (not mine) at expense of yours (it’s not clear if you lose anything, but what’s important is that I’m mostly doing it for Joe). It’s much easier to morally justify aggression in the name of someone else where I am just “protecting the weak”.
This example is a lie that could be classified as “aggression light” (because it maximises my utility at the expense of victim’s utility), whereas the examples in the post are trying to maximise other’s utility. What I find interesting is that the second example from the post (protecting Joe) almost fits your formula but it seems intuitively much more benign.
One of the reasons I feel better about lying to protect Joe is that there I maximise his utility (not mine) at expense of yours (it’s not clear if you lose anything, but what’s important is that I’m mostly doing it for Joe). It’s much easier to morally justify aggression in the name of someone else where I am just “protecting the weak”.