buybuydandavis comments on Avoiding the emergency room - Less Wrong

7 Post author: NancyLebovitz 14 May 2013 08:23PM

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Comment author: buybuydandavis 17 May 2013 08:59:22AM 2 points [-]

And she uses the original definition of altruism (approximately: reversed survival instinct),

I don't think that's the definiction she gives, although given the sum of her beliefs, you could say that. Reversed "interests" instinct seems about right. It's about who is the intended beneficiary of the action - if it's them, it's a good action, and if it's you, it's a bad action. Now you put that together with life as your fundamental interest, and you could say "reversed survival instinct", but I think that conveys a too narrow concept for most people.