One thing that comforts people is the assurance that the future holds something great. The fact that we don't know, becomes our hope and the reason we still work daily to stay relevant. If a device was invented that can foretell one's future, I'll opt for it. I know knowing one's future has its consequences, but it'll help me make an early decision to either work towards changing what I saw or work toward what I saw, and if the future can't be changed, I'll know better not to waste my resources and effort in certain endeavors. It's not about just knowing, it's the fact that it makes one better prepared.
Would I buy a device that foretells the future?
Definitely yes. During the time of our grandfathers. Many of them refused certain developments like sponsoring their girl children to school, accepting certain technologies, etc. because they were afraid their investments would be a waste of time. One thing that led to their decisions was because the future was hidden from them, they worked with the norms and culture that was common at the time and couldn't foresee the future of their children with and without education. If such a device was present, I believe most parents would choose it to know what the future holds for their children and know how well to allocate resources for it.
Image generated using Gemini AI
Fear and curiosity
What we know, we become better prepared for it. What people fear the most is the unknown, even though certain truths can be more harmful than being in the blind. For my personality, I can handle whatever truth and this is the reason I'll want to know. It would help me deal with my fears and curiosity and know where to put my energy the most.
Consequences
Everything that has an advantage also has its disadvantages. Let's assume the device foretells that I ended up poor, I may be tempted to lose hope in trying because of what I've seen, then eventually become poor. It's possible that I ended up poor because the device knew I would stop working if the result was not in my favor and not actually because I would have been. So the results from the device may be an aftermath of checking our future rather than what we truly would have become if we didn't check it. In short words, the device may start to foretell the aftermath of our fears rather than the results we may have obtained if we had stayed in the dark and kept our hopes alive.