Why should I make that much effort to get a simple answer to a simple question? Eliezer obviously had something specific in mind when he wrote “Problem”. Why didn’t he just write a couple of sentences saying what it was when I indicated that I didn’t get the reference?
Same with the other two questions. I wasn’t asking difficult questions, just simple clarifications.
Why should I make that much effort to get a simple answer to a simple question?
I’m not suggesting that you ought to have to. I don’t think you violated any particular etiquette with your requests for clarification. If going meta and questioning whether the lack of reply is justifiable is your preferred use for the effort then by all means do that instead.
I have no idea why Eliezer didn’t answer you. Maybe he was busy. Maybe he was self absorbed. But I do make this observation in general: If someone presents a position along the lines of “it is right to believe there is are Problems’s with X” then I usually don’t expect them to answer me if I press them for an example. This is particularly the case if there are, in fact, no obvious examples. Even if an example could be given, successfully justifying themselves in response to what can be construed as a challenge does not necessarily benefit them. If you present your question in your own frame, however, the dynamics are entirely different.
Please expand on that.
Why should I make that much effort to get a simple answer to a simple question? Eliezer obviously had something specific in mind when he wrote “Problem”. Why didn’t he just write a couple of sentences saying what it was when I indicated that I didn’t get the reference?
Same with the other two questions. I wasn’t asking difficult questions, just simple clarifications.
I’m not suggesting that you ought to have to. I don’t think you violated any particular etiquette with your requests for clarification. If going meta and questioning whether the lack of reply is justifiable is your preferred use for the effort then by all means do that instead.
I have no idea why Eliezer didn’t answer you. Maybe he was busy. Maybe he was self absorbed. But I do make this observation in general: If someone presents a position along the lines of “it is right to believe there is are Problems’s with X” then I usually don’t expect them to answer me if I press them for an example. This is particularly the case if there are, in fact, no obvious examples. Even if an example could be given, successfully justifying themselves in response to what can be construed as a challenge does not necessarily benefit them. If you present your question in your own frame, however, the dynamics are entirely different.