Why would I care about whether the Superhappies change themselves to appreciate literature or beauty? What I want is for them to not change me.
The bargain that the Superhappies are offering is to change you less than if they had just changed you by force. I'm guessing if the humans didn't agree to the deal, the Superhappies would have either exterminated the humans completely, or convert them completely to superhappy values.
The benefit of Superhappies changing themselves to appreciate literature and beauty is that when they convert you, you get to keep t...
"Just as they would regret not eating the tiny bodies of the infants." is one of the more moving passages I've read in a long time. Well done Eliezer.
I'm not sure if it's because I'm "used" to Eliezer's styles, but while I can recognize the two posts use different styles, both seem equally "appealing to read" to me. That said, I feel more "informed" and "convinced" by the 2009 style. One thing that really struck out to me as a difference between the two was that the 2009 explored more deeply the school principal example. Before reading the 2009 essay, I "believed in" the claim "It doesn't matter who started it; the important thing is to end it"... (read more)