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steven0461 comments on What bothers you about Less Wrong? - Less Wrong Discussion

18 Post author: Will_Newsome 19 May 2011 10:23AM

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Comment author: steven0461 21 May 2011 10:59:39PM 2 points [-]

A varying degree of belief in utilitarianism (ranging from a confused arithmetic altruism to hardcore Benthamism) seems to be often taken for granted, and rarely challenged.

This simply isn't true. See, for example, the reception of this post.

Comment author: NihilCredo 22 May 2011 12:15:33AM *  4 points [-]

Altruism is a common consequence of utilitarian ideas, but it's not altruism per se (which is discussed in the linked post and comments) that irks me; rather, it's the idea that you can measure, add, subtract, and multiply desirable and indesirable events as if they were hard, fungible currency.

Just to pick the most recent post where this issue comes up, here is a thread that starts with a provocative scenario and challenges people to take a look at what exactly their ethical systems are founded on, but - with only a couple of exceptions, which include the OP - people just automatically skip to wondering "how could I save the most people?" (decision theory talk), or "what counts as 'people', i.e. those units of which I should obviously try to save as many as possible?". There's an implicit assumption that any sentient being whatsoever = 1 'moral weight unit', and it's as simple as that. To me, that's insane.

Edit: The next one I spotted was this one, which is unabashedly utilitarian in outlook, and strongly tied to the Repugnant Conclusion.

Comment author: steven0461 22 May 2011 12:25:31AM *  0 points [-]

Fair enough; I guess komponisto's comment in this thread primed me to misinterpret that part of your comment as primarily a complaint about utilitarian altruism.