Of course not. EA != MIRI != EY. Would've been perfectly happy with "Yes, to the Against Malaria Foundation" as an answer, even though I think AMF is probably not part of the plot. I was trying to communicate the general thought, "Why would it make sense for me to optimize the life of someone with disposable income, if it's the sort of person where their having disposable income ends up making no difference to the rest of the planet?" I have tremendous sympathy and fondness for people with disposable income who use even a small fraction of their income to help out, or who even make a sincerely intentioned and not completely silly attempt to help out, whether or not their help lands anywhere near me; and I am happy to optimize their lives any way I can.
I agree! FWIW from April onwards I will be sending $2K/month (including matching) to FHI, and I am interested in the advice in this thread.
On ChrisHallquist's post extolling the virtues of money, the top comment is Eliezer pointing out the lack of concrete examples. Can anyone think of any? This is not just hypothetical: if I think your suggestion is good, I will try it (and report back on how it went)
I care about health, improving personal skills (particularly: programming, writing, people skills), gaining respect (particularly at work), and entertainment (these days: primarily books and computer games). If you think I should care about something else, feel free to suggest it.
I am early-twenties programmer living in San Francisco. In the interest of getting advice useful to more than one person, I'll omit further personal details.
Budget: $50/day
If your idea requires significant ongoing time commitment, that is a major negative.