Diadem comments on Collaborative Truth-Seeking - Less Wrong

11 Post author: Gleb_Tsipursky 04 May 2016 11:28PM

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Comment author: buybuydandavis 05 May 2016 11:40:13AM 1 point [-]

Yet given that we are not always fully rational and strategic in our social engagements, it is easy to slip up within debate mode and orient toward winning instead of uncovering the truth.

To be fully rational is to orient toward winning.

Me, I'm not fully rational. I'm a moron. I typically do what you suggest instead - orienting toward truth (epistemic truth). It's taken me decades to realize the foolishness of that, but it is still my natural inclination.

-- Recovering Truthaholic

Comment author: Diadem 05 May 2016 04:00:34PM 1 point [-]

Very droll.

But define winning. In many situations, finding the truth is winning.

For example take global warming. Maybe I'm lobbyist for big oil and for me winning means making sure no one takes global warming seriously. But even then knowing the facts is still in my interest. So if I'm amongst fellow lobbyists who I trust it is in my interest to take an open, truth seeking approach. This will help me identify the strong and weak points in my opponents' arguments. It will help in formulating distractionary strategies. Etc. I will just have to make sure no one records the meeting and then leaks it.