Hello Robert. I suggest you might read other comments I’ve left. I had provided information for years to EA, and I could not continue doing so without pay. I’ve mentioned in the comments that I have no desire to work with CEA after the events I speak of. Specifically, I felt that CEA was using information obtained through me in ways that were putting me at risk of liability. I added the piece about defamation laws in the UK versus US because CEA using information they obtained through me puts them at even greater risk than it does me, and I’d like to them to stop doing that—I hope you would as well, if you care about the movement. I asked to work with them so I could share information in ways that (1) reduced the legal risk to me personally, and (2) helped survivors/increased reporting. CEA declined, and wrote a piece I believe is defamatory. hope CEA does chose to work with experienced investigators for the investigation they are conducting, and lawyers instead of handling it in house. This is also why I’d like to warn of the risks taken.
Additionally, earlier in the piece—I say “tech, EA (Effective Altruists), rationalists, cybersecurity/hackers, crypto/blockchain, Burning Man camps, secret parties, and coliving houses”. Later in the piece and in this forum, I’ve clarified the number of cases I feel—without a full legal investigation, which could change this—how many cases put CEA/other org at legal risk. You are correct that I’m not the person to do this, but I hope CEA/another org chooses to work with the appropriate professionals to find out how / what the risks I speak of are
I’ve added the caveats because I do have a legal degree (and I 100% know this will be downvoted, because every time I’ve brought that up, it gets downvoted). For legal reasons, I add disclaimers. I can understand how that comes across as wishy-washy to a lay person, and when I was writing my piece, I knew it was likely someone would write a post such as yours. However, at the end of the day, I felt I’d rather protect myself legally and that it was important for me to speak my experiences and the knowledge I’ve gathered. I can’t emphasis this strongly enough to the orgs within the movement: please, please protect yourselves.
I’d also prefer NOT to do the legal thing and hope that warnings of those options might spur action and communication, but whenever I do have contact with the movement and/or people from the orgs, my motives are called into question in unfavorable ways, rather than curiosity about why I might say some of the things I say. You ask people to form their own opinions, and then launch into a lengthy, persuasive piece about your opinions, and throw out accusations and discredit rather than asking questions.
It’s—to me—especially sad that no one has expressed interest in finding out about the “30 cases”, nor expressed sadness that so many assaults happened.
Further, I understand the way I speak/write is quite different from that of most EAs, but perhaps some outside perspectives and voices can help you. I’d like fo your movement to stop doing things that might not be legal, and I had hoped that point would come across, but judging from your post and the upvotes, that doesn’t work. I understand that I’m saying isn’t pleasant and is quite difficult to hear, and so, it’s likely that your movement reacts with defensiveness and tries to discredit me. And I understand that the language I use, even when I try to frame it gently, isn’t the way EAs speak. I am, however, trained in formal logic and rhetoric, so I don’t speak illogically—though I find it too time consuming and unnatural to reframe my writing in EA friendly ways.
Small correct—I did not speak to CEA in July 2022 - I spoke to them in August 2022. And yes, I didn’t do this full time until recently and so my website also dates to that time—you can also find out my name and look me up on LinkedIn if you’d like more information about me/my background. And—I do have private communications that show longer work around this issue.
Hello Robert. I suggest you might read other comments I’ve left. I had provided information for years to EA, and I could not continue doing so without pay. I’ve mentioned in the comments that I have no desire to work with CEA after the events I speak of. Specifically, I felt that CEA was using information obtained through me in ways that were putting me at risk of liability. I added the piece about defamation laws in the UK versus US because CEA using information they obtained through me puts them at even greater risk than it does me, and I’d like to them to stop doing that—I hope you would as well, if you care about the movement. I asked to work with them so I could share information in ways that (1) reduced the legal risk to me personally, and (2) helped survivors/increased reporting. CEA declined, and wrote a piece I believe is defamatory. hope CEA does chose to work with experienced investigators for the investigation they are conducting, and lawyers instead of handling it in house. This is also why I’d like to warn of the risks taken.
Additionally, earlier in the piece—I say “tech, EA (Effective Altruists), rationalists, cybersecurity/hackers, crypto/blockchain, Burning Man camps, secret parties, and coliving houses”. Later in the piece and in this forum, I’ve clarified the number of cases I feel—without a full legal investigation, which could change this—how many cases put CEA/other org at legal risk. You are correct that I’m not the person to do this, but I hope CEA/another org chooses to work with the appropriate professionals to find out how / what the risks I speak of are
I’ve added the caveats because I do have a legal degree (and I 100% know this will be downvoted, because every time I’ve brought that up, it gets downvoted). For legal reasons, I add disclaimers. I can understand how that comes across as wishy-washy to a lay person, and when I was writing my piece, I knew it was likely someone would write a post such as yours. However, at the end of the day, I felt I’d rather protect myself legally and that it was important for me to speak my experiences and the knowledge I’ve gathered. I can’t emphasis this strongly enough to the orgs within the movement: please, please protect yourselves.
I’d also prefer NOT to do the legal thing and hope that warnings of those options might spur action and communication, but whenever I do have contact with the movement and/or people from the orgs, my motives are called into question in unfavorable ways, rather than curiosity about why I might say some of the things I say. You ask people to form their own opinions, and then launch into a lengthy, persuasive piece about your opinions, and throw out accusations and discredit rather than asking questions.
It’s—to me—especially sad that no one has expressed interest in finding out about the “30 cases”, nor expressed sadness that so many assaults happened.
Further, I understand the way I speak/write is quite different from that of most EAs, but perhaps some outside perspectives and voices can help you. I’d like fo your movement to stop doing things that might not be legal, and I had hoped that point would come across, but judging from your post and the upvotes, that doesn’t work. I understand that I’m saying isn’t pleasant and is quite difficult to hear, and so, it’s likely that your movement reacts with defensiveness and tries to discredit me. And I understand that the language I use, even when I try to frame it gently, isn’t the way EAs speak. I am, however, trained in formal logic and rhetoric, so I don’t speak illogically—though I find it too time consuming and unnatural to reframe my writing in EA friendly ways.
Small correct—I did not speak to CEA in July 2022 - I spoke to them in August 2022. And yes, I didn’t do this full time until recently and so my website also dates to that time—you can also find out my name and look me up on LinkedIn if you’d like more information about me/my background. And—I do have private communications that show longer work around this issue.