Some of the more "philosophical" posts on Scott Adams's blog exist to elicit interesting feedback from his commenters, feedback such as: what's wrong with his ideas, what he ought to know about the topic but doesn't, original ways of looking at the problem, interesting related topics and so forth. And sometimes he is trying to make a point obliquely; by asking awkward questions or "taking ideas to their illogiocal conclusion" he is trying to point out non-obvious flaws in commonly held assumptions. To take him literally or to jump to co...
I wonder if Mr. Yudkowsky could sum up everything he is trying to say on this blog in ten short, snappy proverbs. Kind of like the Ten Commandments, or the lists at the end of the " . . . for Dummies" books.
On second thoughts, seven plus or minus two might be a better number.
The Gelfin quote is great. I suppose making excuses and rationalising things is a sign of cognitive dissonance and ought to act as a warning that you need to pull onto the side of the road and check your map, before you arrive at the wrong destination.