juliawise comments on The curse of identity - Less Wrong

121 Post author: Kaj_Sotala 17 November 2011 07:28PM

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Tags: signaling modularity akrasia hypocrisy

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Comment author: juliawise 17 November 2011 09:21:33PM 4 points [-]

That decision would be met with disbelief by my surroundings.

Do you mean that people around you would not believe you were donating? Or would not think your cause a good one? Or would tell you that large donations are strange or a bad idea?

I'd really be interested to know, since I've recently started writing on the topic. Hardly anyone is willing to say why they don't give.

Comment author: Giles 17 November 2011 10:44:05PM 3 points [-]

Hardly anyone is willing to say why they don't give.

My brain tells me that the reason I've only given a tiny fraction of my wealth so far is that there is still valuable information to be learned regarding whether SIAI is the best charity to donate to.

  • I feel fairly sure that I haven't yet acquired/processed all of the relevant information
  • I feel fairly sure that the value of that information is still high
  • I feel that I'm not choosing to acquire that information as quickly as I could be
  • I'm not sure what will happen when the value of information dips below the value of acting promptly - whether I'll start giving massively or move onto the next excuse, i.e. I'm not sure I trust my future self.
Comment author: juliawise 18 November 2011 02:59:32AM *  2 points [-]

The question of how much information is enough is difficult for me, too. My plan right now is to give a good chunk of money every six months or so to whichever charity I think best at that time. That way I stay in the habit of giving (reducing chances that my future self will fail to start) and it gives me a deadline so that I actually do some research.

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