It seems to me that counterfactual is just another word for default—ie the alternative that would have happened if they’d not decided to extort/trade.
Sure, we can use default as another name for a particular counterfactual. Note that many people around here are already asking “how should we compute logical counterfactuals?” Thinking about defaults suggests an emphasis on different considerations, like norms, which seem like the wrong place to start.
(Note also that “what would have happened if they’d not decided to extort/trade” isn’t the right counterfactual, so if that’s what “default” means then I don’t think that defaults are the important questions. We care about counterfactuals over our behavior, or over other peoples’ beliefs about our behavior.)
Sure, we can use default as another name for a particular counterfactual. Note that many people around here are already asking “how should we compute logical counterfactuals?” Thinking about defaults suggests an emphasis on different considerations, like norms, which seem like the wrong place to start.
(Note also that “what would have happened if they’d not decided to extort/trade” isn’t the right counterfactual, so if that’s what “default” means then I don’t think that defaults are the important questions. We care about counterfactuals over our behavior, or over other peoples’ beliefs about our behavior.)