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Gram_Stone comments on Wild Moral Dilemmas - Less Wrong Discussion

17 Post author: sixes_and_sevens 12 May 2015 12:56PM

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Comment author: Gram_Stone 14 May 2015 06:22:02AM 3 points [-]

But for me, psychologically... I want to do the right thing, but I also want to be surrounded by people who do the right thing. When people around me don't do the right thing, it feels futile when I try to do it, so I gradually give up. What is the difference? If you would give me a choice of living in two otherwise equivalent cities, only one city completely vegan, I would choose the vegan city, even if I knew the other city is available. I just don't want to have the temptation right in front of my eyes. Similarly, I would rather work in a company where everyone tries their best, than in a company where people choose the easiest way; it's just difficult to try doing my best when I keep seeing people who choose the easiest way, especially if once in a while their laziness makes my own work harder.

I think you've touched on something important here that I also touched on at the end of my comment above; namely, that in practice, it is often more effective to invest resources in taking preemptive steps to avoid moral dilemmas than it is to prepare for, or expect to be satisfied with your behavior in, actual moral dilemmas.

Comment author: Viliam 14 May 2015 08:20:06AM 2 points [-]

it is often more effective to invest resources in taking preemptive steps to avoid moral dilemmas than it is to prepare for, or expect to be satisfied with your behavior in, actual moral dilemmas.

Such as to build some safety mechanism in trolleys? :D

Also, Bible says "do not bring us into temptation" instead of "help us overcome temptation".