Yes; in very brief: thinking skill has been one of the biggest historical drivers of positive progress, and seems liable to be even more important in the coming decades if humanity ends up existential risks of unprecedented trickiness. CFAR seems well-positioned to make some progress on this problem. See details of where we’re at here: http://lesswrong.com/lw/lfg/cfar_in_2014_continuing_to_climb_out_of_the/
Is there an explanation or argument for why a CFAR donation is at least in the same ballpark of effectiveness as, say, a donation to MIRI or GiveWell?
Yes; in very brief: thinking skill has been one of the biggest historical drivers of positive progress, and seems liable to be even more important in the coming decades if humanity ends up existential risks of unprecedented trickiness. CFAR seems well-positioned to make some progress on this problem. See details of where we’re at here: http://lesswrong.com/lw/lfg/cfar_in_2014_continuing_to_climb_out_of_the/
See a bigger-picture take on our situation (if a bit outdated) in our previous year-end post: http://lesswrong.com/lw/jej/why_cfar/
Also happy to talk.