Great depiction of the different realistic cases of how people get into charity. Those fictional cases, and especially Daniel’s, got me thinking though.
The text never shows what Daniel actually does after the mindset shift: he stops the $3 donation, gives nothing anywhere else, and and the essay only says in passing that he might find effective altruism later. I would argue that the less-thinking Alice, Bob, and Christine could end up doing more than the thinking person.
=> This “accounting for large numbers and cognitive bias” mindset alone is not enough — the equation also needs humility about one’s ability to impact the world, and a bias to action. Otherwise it could lead to emotional and thinking paralysis and drive anxiety up. This is an extrapolation from my personal experience when I started thinking about a career path I want to pursue.
=> So although I respect the endeavour of cause prioritization and calculations, I would still advocate that ineffective altruism is better than no altruism. For a general person without many resources, it’s a great mindset to just be kind, help others, and be content with the however small or big positive impact you make on the world.
Great depiction of the different realistic cases of how people get into charity. Those fictional cases, and especially Daniel’s, got me thinking though.
The text never shows what Daniel actually does after the mindset shift: he stops the $3 donation, gives nothing anywhere else, and and the essay only says in passing that he might find effective altruism later. I would argue that the less-thinking Alice, Bob, and Christine could end up doing more than the thinking person.
=> This “accounting for large numbers and cognitive bias” mindset alone is not enough — the equation also needs humility about one’s ability to impact the world, and a bias to action. Otherwise it could lead to emotional and thinking paralysis and drive anxiety up. This is an extrapolation from my personal experience when I started thinking about a career path I want to pursue.
=> So although I respect the endeavour of cause prioritization and calculations, I would still advocate that ineffective altruism is better than no altruism. For a general person without many resources, it’s a great mindset to just be kind, help others, and be content with the however small or big positive impact you make on the world.