Just because someone doesn't have a 'cause' to shout about from the rooftops, it doesn't mean that that same person has no reason to want to be more rational.
I don't disagree, but becoming a PUA is the end result of studying whatever it is the field is called, so in this twisted analogy presumably RA is the end result of studying rationality. My point is that if you develop rationality in a vacuum and never significantly confront anything with it, there's no way to know if your rationality is actually effective, and no reason to improve its flaws -- and this is basically what you say in the second paragraph, so surely we agree here.
There is admittedly a large inferential gap between a theist and your typical LW member, but what would you say to someone who had just come in from reading HPMOR and wanted to know more about LessWrong? "Sorry, come back when you have a cause like an anime character!"?
It sounds like you were turned off by EY's illustrations with anime references, and not the actual conclusion of the article. In any case, I suspect you would have agreed with it had it been written about e.g. HPMoR!Harry's obsession with science-ifying magic.
EDIT: If by some chance that question wasn't rhetorical, of course I wouldn't say that.
It sounds like you were turned off by EY's illustrations with anime references, and not the actual conclusion of the article. In any case, I suspect you would have agreed with it had it been written about e.g. HPMoR!Harry's obsession with science-ifying magic.
It took me a (comparatively, compared to some other strangeness in the Sequences) short time to get past all of the anime references. I don't think that Harry wanting to science-ify magic would have been enough to bring me around, as what I don't like about the 'something to protect' post is that ...
I recognize the title could be more informative. At the same time I believe it says what is important.
I believe in a deity, I believe in mathematical entities in the same way.
The community of LessWrong (from whenceforth: LessWrong) is deeply interesting to me, appearing as a semi-organized atheist, reductionist community.
LessWrong seems very interested in promoting rationality, which I applaud. The effort does seem scattered, though, and this is the reason I post.
One has Eliezer's website with some interesting posts. The same of this community. The community links to some posts when you are coming for the first time into it, and you also have a filter for top posts. One has the blog. And recently, the center for modern rationality (in the same page as harrypoter fanfiction about rationality).
The point being there is no defined roadmap to go from AIC (average irrational chump to make an analogy to Game - which also seems to come up around quite a bit) to RA (again, rationality artist).
I write this post as to maybe generate a discussion on how the efforts could be concentrated and a new direction taken.
Should the creation of the Center for Modern Rationality envision this same concentration, this post may and should be disregard.
If it does not, then I leave it to your consideration.
Hang.