Sometime last year, I listened to an audio book "Version Zero" by David Yoon. Similar premise (spoiler alert).

We are currently running a system where people can work at a job making (pick a number) 40 bucks per hour. With that 40 bucks, they can buy 10 gallons of gasoline. A gallon of gasoline is (more than) 100 manhours of power/energy.

1000:1 ratio between effort expended and effort received.

Yeah. I would push the goddamned button, too. The world doesn't want to be saved. It wants to be rich.