Thanks for the piece. It brings me two contradicting emotions of warmth and unsettling sadness for “excluding” the rest of humanity. I don’t think I need to explain the first one, but I want to explore the second.
I note two things which I can unite under the “honest EA” concept: 1) EA, as a concept, is a very human way of thinking. If you ask your average Joe if they want to do good, they’d likely say “yes,” and if you’d ask them if they’d like to do it effectively, they’d probably also say “yes.” So, I really believe that an honest version of EA is close to universal moral (*might be too universal, honestly, but that is a problem with the word “good”) 2) All three features you point out, as well as point 1) above, are not binary. For each individual, there is a distribution of the range of empathy, there is scope sensitivity (it is just that it gets overridden by moral circle concerns), and surely there are environments and conditions in which almost any human can experience the scout mindset, just that few people bother to create those environments. Being effective in one’s altruism is also the point on the distribution.
As you notice, we appreciate that it’s ok to care more about our family and friends, and in those moments, we are not “absolute EA,” but we are very normal humans.
I believe that honestly appreciating the fact that “we are just points on the distribution that, due to a privilege of economic, intellectual or emotional stability, are on the “high” end of the distribution” can provide us with the humility to empathize with a fellow non-EA human being and recognize that the three features you’ve listed, are, in fact, everywhere. It is just that it takes much more than these three qualities to make a human.
I believe this recognition is essential for the future of the community and the psychological health of the citizens of this forum. I want to talk to non-EA, not as to someone who doesn’t share my values, but to someone who wasn’t lucky enough to have a chance to make space for EA activities in their days, minds, and hearts but deep inside, we share the same honest EA idea “we aim to do good effectively, while also doing those other mysterious things that make us into a wholesome human being.”
*This might be the very same way you feel. But I still thought it was important to share.
Thanks for the piece. It brings me two contradicting emotions of warmth and unsettling sadness for “excluding” the rest of humanity. I don’t think I need to explain the first one, but I want to explore the second.
I note two things which I can unite under the “honest EA” concept:
1) EA, as a concept, is a very human way of thinking. If you ask your average Joe if they want to do good, they’d likely say “yes,” and if you’d ask them if they’d like to do it effectively, they’d probably also say “yes.” So, I really believe that an honest version of EA is close to universal moral (*might be too universal, honestly, but that is a problem with the word “good”)
2) All three features you point out, as well as point 1) above, are not binary. For each individual, there is a distribution of the range of empathy, there is scope sensitivity (it is just that it gets overridden by moral circle concerns), and surely there are environments and conditions in which almost any human can experience the scout mindset, just that few people bother to create those environments. Being effective in one’s altruism is also the point on the distribution.
As you notice, we appreciate that it’s ok to care more about our family and friends, and in those moments, we are not “absolute EA,” but we are very normal humans.
I believe that honestly appreciating the fact that “we are just points on the distribution that, due to a privilege of economic, intellectual or emotional stability, are on the “high” end of the distribution” can provide us with the humility to empathize with a fellow non-EA human being and recognize that the three features you’ve listed, are, in fact, everywhere. It is just that it takes much more than these three qualities to make a human.
I believe this recognition is essential for the future of the community and the psychological health of the citizens of this forum.
I want to talk to non-EA, not as to someone who doesn’t share my values, but to someone who wasn’t lucky enough to have a chance to make space for EA activities in their days, minds, and hearts but deep inside, we share the same honest EA idea “we aim to do good effectively, while also doing those other mysterious things that make us into a wholesome human being.”
*This might be the very same way you feel. But I still thought it was important to share.