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Larks comments on Open Thread: September 2009 - Less Wrong
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This phrase makes the difference for me- the 3^^^3 other people in the original argument weren't mad- or at least, no more than would have been mad anyway.
Additionally, in your scenario, we have to consider discount rates- it's certainly conceivable that someone might choose the dust specks over torture now, but be willing to forgo the dust specks in return for torture in 3^^^3 seconds time.
Does it seem likely to you that out of 3^^^3 people chosen with no particular safeguards, not one of them will find a dust speck in the eye to be maddening? It could be the last straw in a string of misfortunes; it could set off some causal chain that will lead to other maddening events, etc.
3^^^3 is such a huge number, some must find it maddening, but the proportion will be a lot lower than the odds that 50 years of torture breaks you mentally.