I have come to realize that inside my mind is not merely self-delusion, but a full-blown case of doublethink. There are two mutually exclusive statements that I simutaneously hold to be unquestionably true. Here they are:
1) I should not cause suffering to others.
2) Only my own happiness really matters.
I can even explain this doublethink. I am naturally selfish, but society makes me be good. I could try to believe that only I matter, and do good things only for the show, but that strategy doesn’t work for most people. Being good is too complex.
This doublethink creates intresting effects. When I read about context insensitivity, I wondered if that’s really a bias, or just apathy masquerading as concern. I’d probably give the same amount to save five birds as I would to save Atlantis from sinking. Both are social acts.
I also wonder about coherent extrapolated volition. What will it find when it extrapolates us? That we all want the whole pie? That we would gladly exterminate everyone else if we could get away with it?
Those two aren’t necessarily mutually exclusive though. Only your own happiness really matters to you, but at the same time you are a finite being and so can’t do everything for yourself. So, on average, your best strategy is to recruit allies who are willing to help you attain happiness.
And while there may be short-term advantages to hurting others to benefit yourself, the best long-run strategy is to be the cause of as little suffering as possible because dishing out suffering makes other people less likely to help you with your own goals.
The fact that this strategy does sometimes spectacularly fail doesn’t change the fact that it’s your best bet. At least until you get to be old enough that it’s time to start cashing in favors because long-term investments are no longer likely to pay off. And even then it still pays to not alienate your friends.
Forgive me, Master Eliezer, for I have sinned.
I have come to realize that inside my mind is not merely self-delusion, but a full-blown case of doublethink. There are two mutually exclusive statements that I simutaneously hold to be unquestionably true. Here they are:
1) I should not cause suffering to others. 2) Only my own happiness really matters.
I can even explain this doublethink. I am naturally selfish, but society makes me be good. I could try to believe that only I matter, and do good things only for the show, but that strategy doesn’t work for most people. Being good is too complex.
This doublethink creates intresting effects. When I read about context insensitivity, I wondered if that’s really a bias, or just apathy masquerading as concern. I’d probably give the same amount to save five birds as I would to save Atlantis from sinking. Both are social acts.
I also wonder about coherent extrapolated volition. What will it find when it extrapolates us? That we all want the whole pie? That we would gladly exterminate everyone else if we could get away with it?
Those two aren’t necessarily mutually exclusive though. Only your own happiness really matters to you, but at the same time you are a finite being and so can’t do everything for yourself. So, on average, your best strategy is to recruit allies who are willing to help you attain happiness.
And while there may be short-term advantages to hurting others to benefit yourself, the best long-run strategy is to be the cause of as little suffering as possible because dishing out suffering makes other people less likely to help you with your own goals.
The fact that this strategy does sometimes spectacularly fail doesn’t change the fact that it’s your best bet. At least until you get to be old enough that it’s time to start cashing in favors because long-term investments are no longer likely to pay off. And even then it still pays to not alienate your friends.