Yeah, my basic point was that just as I don’t think we need to ground a value like “caring for those we love” in whether it has the best consequences across all time and space, I think the same applies to many other instances of caring for and helping individuals — not just those we love.
For example, if we walk past a complete stranger who is enduring torment and is in need of urgent help, we would rightly take action to help this person, even if we cannot say whether this action reduces total suffering or otherwise improves the world overall. I think that’s a reasonable practical stance, and I think the spirit of this stance applies to many ways in which we can and do benefit strangers, not just to rare emergencies.
In other words, I was just trying to say that when it comes to reasonable values aimed at helping others, I don’t think it’s a case of “it must be grounded in strong impartiality or bust”. Descriptively, I don’t think that reflects virtually anyone’s actual values or revealed preferences, and I don’t think it’s reasonable from a prescriptive perspective either (e.g. I don’t think it’s reasonable or defensible to abstain from helping a tormented stranger based on cluelessness about the large-scale consequences).
I’ve replied to this in a separate Quick Take. :) (Not sure if you’d disagree with any of what I write, but I found it helpful to clarify my position. Thanks for prompting this!)
Yeah, my basic point was that just as I don’t think we need to ground a value like “caring for those we love” in whether it has the best consequences across all time and space, I think the same applies to many other instances of caring for and helping individuals — not just those we love.
For example, if we walk past a complete stranger who is enduring torment and is in need of urgent help, we would rightly take action to help this person, even if we cannot say whether this action reduces total suffering or otherwise improves the world overall. I think that’s a reasonable practical stance, and I think the spirit of this stance applies to many ways in which we can and do benefit strangers, not just to rare emergencies.
In other words, I was just trying to say that when it comes to reasonable values aimed at helping others, I don’t think it’s a case of “it must be grounded in strong impartiality or bust”. Descriptively, I don’t think that reflects virtually anyone’s actual values or revealed preferences, and I don’t think it’s reasonable from a prescriptive perspective either (e.g. I don’t think it’s reasonable or defensible to abstain from helping a tormented stranger based on cluelessness about the large-scale consequences).
I’ve replied to this in a separate Quick Take. :) (Not sure if you’d disagree with any of what I write, but I found it helpful to clarify my position. Thanks for prompting this!)