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amcknight comments on On Leverage Research's plan for an optimal world - Less Wrong Discussion

25 Post author: Mitchell_Porter 10 January 2012 09:49AM

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Comment author: amcknight 11 January 2012 01:44:41AM *  2 points [-]

This is way too harsh. So they don't have a great plan. They have amazing goals and have said that Connection Theory (despite being all over the site) is not completely necessary to accomplish their goals. Why bash them here? Why not bash the millions of groups that have both a bad plan and bad goals?

The idea that a magic new theory of psychology will unlock human potential and create a new political majority of model citizens is a secular messianism with nothing to back it up.

Why add the word "magic" or mention "messianism"? Smells unfair to me.

Comment author: Mitchell_Porter 11 January 2012 02:17:34AM 5 points [-]

Connection Theory is not the problem. It's the whole idea of saving the world with a psychological theory. That's what tipped my assessment from positive to negative.

Have you looked at the plan? Magic and messianic are not exaggerations.