[I was sympathetic to common progressive/left-wing/social justice views before encountering EA. I’m from Germany, so my experience might not apply as much to the US.]
I’m wondering if another reason why some progressives may not like EA is a much more cynical prior about the intentions of powerful people and institutions, plus an unwillingness to update away from it or inability to identify evidence that would allow for such updates.
E.g. it strikes me that before I encountered EA the only context in which I ever had heard about the Gates Foundation was in contexts where it was at least implied that obviously we should expect its activities to serve Gates’s private interests rather than the common good. It requires some knowledge about the particulars of the Foundation’s activities, and context to understand how it differs from the activities of other foundations, to come to a more sympathetic view.
[I was sympathetic to common progressive/left-wing/social justice views before encountering EA. I’m from Germany, so my experience might not apply as much to the US.]
I’m wondering if another reason why some progressives may not like EA is a much more cynical prior about the intentions of powerful people and institutions, plus an unwillingness to update away from it or inability to identify evidence that would allow for such updates.
E.g. it strikes me that before I encountered EA the only context in which I ever had heard about the Gates Foundation was in contexts where it was at least implied that obviously we should expect its activities to serve Gates’s private interests rather than the common good. It requires some knowledge about the particulars of the Foundation’s activities, and context to understand how it differs from the activities of other foundations, to come to a more sympathetic view.