Eliezer_Yudkowsky comments on Self-skepticism: the first principle of rationality - Less Wrong

36 Post author: aaronsw 06 August 2012 12:51AM

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Comment author: Eliezer_Yudkowsky 07 August 2012 12:17:53AM 22 points [-]

I don't think it's fair - I think it's a bit motivated - to mention these as mysterious controversies and antics, without also mentioning that his actions could reasonably be interpreted as heroic. I was applauding when I read the JSTOR incident, and only wish he'd gotten away with downloading the whole thing and distributing it.

Comment author: gwern 07 August 2012 12:27:56AM *  14 points [-]

I agree they were heroic and good things, and I was disgusted when I looked into JSTOR's financial filings (not that I was happy with the WMF either).

But there's a difference between admiring the first penguin off the ice and noting that this is a good thing to do, and wanting to be that penguin or near enough that penguin that one might fall off as well. And this is especially true for organizations.

Comment author: Eliezer_Yudkowsky 07 August 2012 12:46:23AM 19 points [-]

Even if so, one should still at least mention, in a debate on character, that the controversy in question just happened to be about an attempted heroic good deed.