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TheOtherDave comments on [Poll] Less Wrong and Mainstream Philosophy: How Different are We? - Less Wrong Discussion

38 Post author: Jayson_Virissimo 26 September 2012 12:25PM

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Comment author: TheOtherDave 26 September 2012 05:10:45PM 10 points [-]

Thinking about this...

So, yes, in many cases I make decisions based on moral principles, because the alternatives are computationally intractable. And in a few cases I judge character traits as a proxy for doing either. And I endorse all of that, under the circumstances. Which sounds like what you're describing.

But if I discovered that one of my moral principles was causing me to act in ways that had consequences I anti-value, I would endorse discarding that principle. Which seems to me like I'm a consequentialist who sometimes uses moral principles as a processing shortcut.

Were I actually a deontologist, as described here, presumably I would shrug my shoulders, perhaps regret the negative consequences of my moral principle (perhaps not), and go on using it.

Admittedly, I'm not sure I have a crisp understanding of the distinction between moral principles (which consequentialism on this account ignores) and values (on which it depends).