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MoreOn comments on Enjoying musical fashion: why not? - Less Wrong
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I'm sure that you're absolutely technically correct when saying what you'd said, but I had to reread it 5 times just to figure out what you meant, and I'm still not sure.
Are you saying that the strategy to indiscriminately like whatever's popular will lead to worse outcomes because of random effects, as in this experiment that showed that popularity is largely random? Then you're right--because what are the chances that your preferences exactly match the popular choice?
On the other hand, if it so happens that you end up liking something that's popular and you couldn't tell it apart from something similar in a blind test, is it in any way bad that you're getting utility out of it?
Yes, that's correct. Generally, permitting your valuations or beliefs to be influenced hysteretically in the direction of what's popular is bad. However, because aesthetic judgments have minor epistemic harm, and have instrumental value due to better "bonding" with other humans, that general heuristic does not apply here, so you can safely permit yourself to be drawn toward the judgment of others with respect to music.
I shouldn't, but it's safe for humans.
Clippy, I think we would bond better if you would strongly update towards liking the aesthetic of Radiohead.
Perhaps, but I think the bond strength enhancement would be far greater if you would strongly update towards liking the aesthetic of the paperclip shape for metals.
This is almost undoubtedly true; shared beliefs forge stronger bonds when they are not widely held.