pwno comments on Share Your Anti-Akrasia Tricks - Less Wrong

20 Post author: Vladimir_Golovin 15 May 2009 07:06PM

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Comment author: pwno 17 May 2009 09:00:52PM 0 points [-]

...is just us not wanting to admit, to others or to ourselves, what our actual desires are

That's definitely a possible mistake. Sort of reminds me of how people say, "everyone acts rationally because they always do what they want to do. It is impossible to be irrational!" This isn't true, however, if you're trying to maximize utility within your expected lifetime.

But I think most of us use the word to categories the the feeling that arises from wanting to (not) want something. Because, after all, we aren't just trying to maximize utility for the moment we are in.