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tut 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: tut 21 January 2014 11:10:51AM *  1 point [-]

I don't think that that is an important distinction. Most of the effect I was talking about is that it is easier for something reasonable (something with a relatively large probability of being true) to make the jump from controversial belief to generally accepted belief. Once something is generally accepted and people stop arguing about it, there is no strong mechanism rejecting false beliefs.

To the contrary, new beliefs can seem more reasonable by being associated with previously accepted beliefs, so beliefs in clusters of strongly held beliefs such as religions and certain ideologies are less likely to be true than the first belief in the cluster to become generally accepted.

Comment author: Eugine_Nier 22 January 2014 12:00:22AM 1 point [-]

Once something is generally accepted and people stop arguing about it, there is no strong mechanism rejecting false beliefs.

Memetic evolution. The fact that a belief has survived for a long time, and survived the rise and fall of civilizations, is evidence in it's favor.