In response to the paragraph starting “I see how …” (which I can’t copy-paste easily due to the subscripts):
I think there are good pragmatic arguments for taking actions that effectively hold Ht responsible for the actions of Ht-1. For example, if Ht-1 committed premeditated murder, this gives some argument that Ht is more likely to harm others than the average person, and should be accordingly restricted for their benefit. And it’s possible that the general practice of punishing Ht for Ht-1′s actions would generally deter crime, while not creating other perverse effects (more effectively than punishing someone else for Ht-1′s actions).
In my view, that’s enough—I generally don’t buy into the idea that there is something fundamental to the idea of “what people deserve” beyond something like “how people should be treated as part of the functioning of a healthy society.”
But if I didn’t hold this view, I could still just insist on splitting the idea of “the same person” into two different things: it seems coherent to say that Ht-1 and Ht are the same person in one sense and different people in another sense. My main claim is that “myself 1 second from now” and “myself now” are different people in the same sense that “a copy of myself created on another planet” and “myself” are different people; we could simultaneously say that both pairs can be called the “same person” in a different sense, one used for responsibility. (And indeed, it does seem reasonable to me that a copy would be held responsible for actions that the original took before “forking.”)
In response to the paragraph starting “I see how …” (which I can’t copy-paste easily due to the subscripts):
I think there are good pragmatic arguments for taking actions that effectively hold Ht responsible for the actions of Ht-1. For example, if Ht-1 committed premeditated murder, this gives some argument that Ht is more likely to harm others than the average person, and should be accordingly restricted for their benefit. And it’s possible that the general practice of punishing Ht for Ht-1′s actions would generally deter crime, while not creating other perverse effects (more effectively than punishing someone else for Ht-1′s actions).
In my view, that’s enough—I generally don’t buy into the idea that there is something fundamental to the idea of “what people deserve” beyond something like “how people should be treated as part of the functioning of a healthy society.”
But if I didn’t hold this view, I could still just insist on splitting the idea of “the same person” into two different things: it seems coherent to say that Ht-1 and Ht are the same person in one sense and different people in another sense. My main claim is that “myself 1 second from now” and “myself now” are different people in the same sense that “a copy of myself created on another planet” and “myself” are different people; we could simultaneously say that both pairs can be called the “same person” in a different sense, one used for responsibility. (And indeed, it does seem reasonable to me that a copy would be held responsible for actions that the original took before “forking.”)