From the links you posted, the most powerful argument for effective altruism to me was this:
“(Try completing the phrase “no matter...” for this one. What exactly is the cost of avoiding inefficiency? “No matter whether you would rather support a different cause that did less good?” Cue the world’s tiniest violin.)”
Unless someone had a kind of limited egotism (that perhaps favored only themselves and their friends, or themselves and their family, or themselves and their country, etc.), or a sadist, I don’t see how they could disagree that making the world a better place in the best way possible is the moral thing to do.
Here is one criticism of EA that I have found powerful:
However, many of the charities that one wouldn’t give to might have been harmful. So while one might miss opportunities by being analytical, they would also avoid mistakes. Also, it would be desirable to know what actions are helpful and for what reasons, so such actions can be sustained and not just happen some of the time by chance. Sustaining those actions would be better over the long term.
From the links you posted, the most powerful argument for effective altruism to me was this:
“(Try completing the phrase “no matter...” for this one. What exactly is the cost of avoiding inefficiency? “No matter whether you would rather support a different cause that did less good?” Cue the world’s tiniest violin.)”
Unless someone had a kind of limited egotism (that perhaps favored only themselves and their friends, or themselves and their family, or themselves and their country, etc.), or a sadist, I don’t see how they could disagree that making the world a better place in the best way possible is the moral thing to do.
Here is one criticism of EA that I have found powerful:
“Since many people are driven by emotion when donating to charity, pushing them to be more judicious might backfire. Overly analytical donors might act with so much self-control that they end up giving less to charity.”
However, many of the charities that one wouldn’t give to might have been harmful. So while one might miss opportunities by being analytical, they would also avoid mistakes. Also, it would be desirable to know what actions are helpful and for what reasons, so such actions can be sustained and not just happen some of the time by chance. Sustaining those actions would be better over the long term.