This is a linkpost for https://foundational-research.org/s-risks-talk-eag-boston-2017/
If we try to answer the question now, it seems very likely we'll get the answer wrong (given my state of uncertainty about the inputs that go into the question). I want to keep civilization going until we know better how to answer these types of questions. For example if we succeed in building a correctly designed/implemented Singleton FAI, it ought to be able to consider this question at leisure, and if it becomes clear that the existence of mature suffering-hating civilizations actually causes more suffering to be created, then it can decide to not make us into a mature suffering-hating civilization, or take whatever other action is appropriate.
Are you worried that by the time such an FAI (or whatever will control our civilization) figures out the answer, it will be too late? (Why? If we can decide that x-risk reduction is bad, then so can it. If it's too late to alter or end civilization at that point, why isn't it already too late for us?) Or are you worried more that the question won't be answered correctly by whatever will control our civilization?
If you are concerned exclusively with suffering, then increasing the number of mature civilizations is obviously bad and you'd prefer that the average civilization not exist. You might think that our descendants are particularly good to keep around, since we hate suffering so much. But in fact almost all s-risks occur precisely because of civilizations that hate suffering, so it's not at all clear that creating "the civilization that we will become on reflection" is better than creating "a random civilization" (which is bad).
To be clear...