[icebraining]

Sure, we don't pay for the full costs of running those machines.

But we also don't pay for the full costs of the stuff needed to have programmers optimize those programs.

A watt used to run an EC2 instance would become more expensive in the world you're suggesting - but so would the watt used to power the light while the developer worked on optimizing the code, or the watt used to power his car, etc.

So unless there's any particular reason why the costs of running EC2 instances are particularly less "priced in" than other costs, I see no reason to think the balance between the two options would change significantly.

When I say they're cheap, I mean relatively. Whether they're cheap in absolute terms (which is what you're arguing) is irrelevant to my argument.

To make an analogy, a bowling ball still weights more than a feather, even if you measure it on the Moon.