Unfortunately, there are only a few types of situations where it's possible to operate successfully without an object level understanding—situations where you have a trustworthy authority to rely on, where you can apply trial and error, where you can use evolved instincts, or where the environment has already been made safe and predictable by someone who did have an object level understanding.
None of those would apply except relying on a trustworthy authority, but since no one has yet been able to demonstrate their ability to bring about a positive Singularity, XiXiDu is again stuck with difficult object level questions in deciding what basis he can use to decide who to trust.
Artificial general intelligence researcher Ben Goertzel answered my question on charitable giving and gave his permission to publish it here. I think the opinion of highly educated experts who have read most of the available material is important to estimate the public and academic perception of risks from AI and the effectiveness with which the risks are communicated by LessWrong and the SIAI.
Alexander Kruel asked:
Ben Goertzel replied:
What can one learn from this?
I'm planning to contact and ask various experts, who are aware of risks from AI, the same question.