PhilGoetz comments on Not By Empathy Alone - Less Wrong

19 Post author: gwern 05 October 2011 12:36AM

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Comment author: irrational 05 October 2011 04:59:15AM 9 points [-]

Fifth, there are victimless transgressions, such as necrophilia, consensual sibling incest, destruction of (unpopulated) places in the environment, or desecration of a grave of someone who has no surviving relative. Empathy makes no sense in these cases.

It is also unclear to me that these should be subject to any moral judgement.

Comment author: PhilGoetz 06 October 2011 12:02:41AM 2 points [-]

It is inconsistent to list the destruction of "unpopulated" environment as a victimless crime, since the main reason for calling it a crime is the belief that its victims matter (it is not "unpopulated"). He seems unaware that he's promoting two opposing viewpoints at the same time.