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Mass_Driver comments on Something's Wrong - Less Wrong
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I think it depends on where the public debate is. If most people think X is OK or even good, then running around saying "X is bad!" is potentially useful. If people already think X is bad, you have to work harder to be useful, perhaps by trying to develop a causal explanation for X. Even if you don't have a solution in mind, being able to postulate why X occurs is very useful, and may narrow the search space for someone with the right skill set.
All of this is true. The question is what fraction of people will hear your message "I would like to contribute an incremental step toward improving X" and what fraction will only hear the message "I would like you to be very upset about X."
And all of that is true. Even if you have a real problem that people are ignoring, highlighting its badness might still be counter-productive.