Toil being evil is An instance where this mustve been submitted by them in the service of hedonic calculus. If we toil we have to consider what pleasures justify it. But I don’t think reasonable people would say that toil is pleasant when carrying out hedonic calculus.
It has precisely been my intention to bring the conversations on economics into the modern reality. That requires an evolution of the discourse, obviously, but I think understanding what the ancients said about economics (rather than call them wrong or silly) is a good starting point because they were the first to use Epicurean methods in this. I do not believe Metrodorus would’ve contradicted epicurus, but if you think that’s what is happening or that’s what I said, then that may explain you’re categorization if these writings as “unclear”.
Concerning the use of “natural”, Epicurus specifically used this word in LMenoeceus in the context of hedonic calculus and choices and avoidances, and a few of the Doctrines mention “natural” as a category, so if we approach the text on property management in good will we will see the connection.
I care about the Herculaneum texts because I spent weeks at the University of Loyola library reading and taking notes to make this content available to everyday people in the form of modern commentaries. But if this is a subject that does not interest others we do not have to carry on with a study of economics. There will be another time and another audience for this.