Mark_Nau comments on Fake Selfishness - Less Wrong

28 Post author: Eliezer_Yudkowsky 08 November 2007 02:31AM

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Comment author: Mark_Nau 15 November 2007 11:28:07AM 1 point [-]

When I say that I am selfish, I mean to express that I think the best model for "altruism" is that of a good consumed much like any other. I consume it for my personal enjoyment, not in proportion to the benefit received by the recipient. And, ceteris paribus, with a declining marginal utility as quantity consumed increases.

In my eyes, a "true" altruist would value the 1000th meal provided to a starving third-worlder on par with the 1st one provided, given that the beneficiaries valued the meals similarly. Nobody behaves that way. Altruism is a terrible model for human behavior.

This sort of scope insensitivity isn't a logical error for selfish people. I have every reason to value the 1000th orange I consume this week less than the 1st. It's only a conundrum for people claiming to be altruistic. And I would think it would be a killing blow.