Eliezer_Yudkowsky comments on Congratulations to Paris Hilton - Less Wrong

-2 Post author: Eliezer_Yudkowsky 19 October 2007 12:31AM

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Comment author: Eliezer_Yudkowsky 19 October 2007 03:51:15PM 0 points [-]

I do not think that people should prioritize cryonics over SIAI, so stop being shocked, Vassar. I think people should prioritize cryonics over eating at fancy restaurants or over having a pleasant picture in their room. If anyone still does this I don't want to hear them asking whether SIAI or cryonics has higher priority.

I wish people would try a little harder to read into my statements, though not for Straussian reasons. By saying "life consequences" I specifically meant to restrict the range to narrower than "consequences in general", i.e., personal rather than global expected utility.

Specific consequences can render Paris's cryo contract irrelevant or ineffectual, but that doesn't change the expected utilities in personal life consequences. It's pretty hard to see something with a larger life-EU than a cryo contract that can be amortized over millions of years.

Yes, Paris can be criticized! Anyone can be criticized. But it is considered hypocritical to criticize another for a flaw that you could realistically be repairing in yourself but haven't, and it is in this sense that I spoke of "losing the right".