I think you’re actually right here. A couple of points stand out to me:
Megan says she still wants to build a movement that ‘wants the world to be a better, kinder, softer place’
EA, like it or not, probably isn’t that movement- EA is a movement that mashes together lots of different counterintuitive, often edgy ideas, makes trade-offs that clash with more mainstream ethical views, relies on often obscure philosophies and the work of a few very clever, fairly weird people… and is funded to a pretty major degree by those billionaires she’s so tired of.
I suspect that she really wants the EA movement to be something it’s not, and finds the cognitive dissonance of trying to build this movement particularly stressful. As you mention, some people just enjoy PR and some people might just be happy defending a movement that they have major disagreements with, because the alternative is worse (political parties seem the obvious example) but Megan doesn’t seem to be in either category.
Personally, I feel more comfortable with the way EA is, and I acknowledge the trade-offs- when I do community building (less frequently), I don’t feel tired by any of the issues mentioned. I tend to take the fairly consistent line that, if a certain scandal or drama within EA makes the movement something that you really don’t want to identify with, you’re probably not right for EA (but I’m happy talking about recommended charities etc.). I don’t feel like I’ve ever been ‘in a position where I have to apologize for sexism, racism, and other toxic ideologies within this movement’.
I think you’re actually right here. A couple of points stand out to me:
Megan says she still wants to build a movement that ‘wants the world to be a better, kinder, softer place’
EA, like it or not, probably isn’t that movement- EA is a movement that mashes together lots of different counterintuitive, often edgy ideas, makes trade-offs that clash with more mainstream ethical views, relies on often obscure philosophies and the work of a few very clever, fairly weird people… and is funded to a pretty major degree by those billionaires she’s so tired of.
I suspect that she really wants the EA movement to be something it’s not, and finds the cognitive dissonance of trying to build this movement particularly stressful. As you mention, some people just enjoy PR and some people might just be happy defending a movement that they have major disagreements with, because the alternative is worse (political parties seem the obvious example) but Megan doesn’t seem to be in either category.
Personally, I feel more comfortable with the way EA is, and I acknowledge the trade-offs- when I do community building (less frequently), I don’t feel tired by any of the issues mentioned. I tend to take the fairly consistent line that, if a certain scandal or drama within EA makes the movement something that you really don’t want to identify with, you’re probably not right for EA (but I’m happy talking about recommended charities etc.). I don’t feel like I’ve ever been ‘in a position where I have to apologize for sexism, racism, and other toxic ideologies within this movement’.