Perfectionist's Dilemma *Edited*

Original Image:
http://www.prometheus-journal.com
/2009/05a-new-experience-machine-no-thanks
-this-one%E2%80%99s-fine/

My last post I wrote about was on the Experience Machine (Link Here!.) The reason I refer to it is that it is closely related to what I will be writing about in this post. Perfectionists generally aim to promote a certain way of life and certain values which they deem as 'perfect' or be seen as improving a person's life. There is one problem which I find troubling for the Perfectionist theory which seems to encounter the idea of the experience machine.

The problem I face is that what if the perfectionist had the opportunity to make the experience  machine and create it so that it creates the 'perfect' world where everyone follows and shares the same 'perfect' value of the good life. If they say yes, then this says that if a machine was possible then regardless, the theory states that we should jump into this illusion. This is troubling since the majority of us would rather not be subject to non-real experiences.

Okay, so the perfectionist may turn round and say that we should strive to achieve the idea of the good life as long as it means that its citizens derive pleasure (and pain) from real experiences, not ones that are merely illusionary.
This response would not be such a problem for the liberal, socialist, anarchist etc. because they do not state the properties of the good life (though there are arguments to make it generally better.) The perfectionist however must answer the question of what is distinct about the good life that means that we can deny the experience machine as not part of the good life. If we can achieve the perfectionist conception of the good life through the experience machine but is denied, must we make an exception of reality and non-reality and if so, how many other factors does this effect for exception.

**Note that I wish to edit this to take into account the position of liberal perfectionists such as Raz's Liberal Perfectionism of Autonomy. The question still remains, is autonomy lost when a person transfers from reality to non-reality. Unlike a dream, if the simulation gave the impression that you were in control of your own life but instead were part of the perfectionist's simulation, would this mean that a person's autonomy transfers between reality and non-reality. If not and autonomy does not exist in Non-reality, what defence to the argument is there against hard determinism.