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JTHM comments on [LINK] Why I'm not on the Rationalist Masterlist - Less Wrong Discussion

21 Post author: Apprentice 06 January 2014 12:16AM

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Comment author: JTHM 08 January 2014 12:54:58AM *  7 points [-]

There would likely be more intellectual diversity among a demographically diverse group randomly selected from the general population than there would be among a homogenous group randomly selected from one demographic within that population. However, if the demographically homogenous group was comprised of specialists of diverse fields of study, they would likely be more intellectually diverse than the demographically diverse group selected from the general population.

What I said was, "There is likely to be more intellectual diversity between an exclusively middle class white male group comprising a physicist, a lawyer, a mathematician, a programmer, a chemist, a politician, an economist, and a businessman than there is between a demographically diverse group of eight people randomly selected from the general population." Please pay attention to the bits in bold.

And the qualities of supporting the left or right are not binaries, they are things that come in degrees, like a thing being hot or cold. When I say, "women support the left and men do not," I mean that more women than men support the left and more men than women support the right. Taken completely out of context, I suppose "women support the left and men do not" could indicate that I meant every woman supports the left and every man supports the right, but that is obvious nonsense. You are twisting my words to fit the most absurd possible interpretation.