There’s plenty in this post that I agree with, in particular “Political organizing is a highly accessible way for many EAs to have a potentially high impact”. I also appreciate that many EAs would like to use their spare time effectively, and this may provide a potential avenue for that.
However I question whether “moral obligation” is really right here. When Toby Ord wrote about the Moral Imperative towards cost-effectiveness, he was arguing for actions which I think were almost certain to be right (i.e. almost certain to make the world a better place) - hence the moral imperative.
However there are lots of ways that lobbying or other political actions could have unforeseen consequences, and could lead to net negative outcomes.
Great point! We are uncertain about the “obligation” part, absolutely. We would love it if other folks would think about the exact nature of the responsibility/obligation/etc. to organize. While I agree that there may not be any obligation to organize, specifically, I think there is decent evidence that it is among the most high-impact activities we can take. Given that I do believe in an obligation to high-impact things, I think we should strongly consider it.
There’s plenty in this post that I agree with, in particular “Political organizing is a highly accessible way for many EAs to have a potentially high impact”. I also appreciate that many EAs would like to use their spare time effectively, and this may provide a potential avenue for that.
However I question whether “moral obligation” is really right here. When Toby Ord wrote about the Moral Imperative towards cost-effectiveness, he was arguing for actions which I think were almost certain to be right (i.e. almost certain to make the world a better place) - hence the moral imperative.
However there are lots of ways that lobbying or other political actions could have unforeseen consequences, and could lead to net negative outcomes.
Great point! We are uncertain about the “obligation” part, absolutely. We would love it if other folks would think about the exact nature of the responsibility/obligation/etc. to organize. While I agree that there may not be any obligation to organize, specifically, I think there is decent evidence that it is among the most high-impact activities we can take. Given that I do believe in an obligation to high-impact things, I think we should strongly consider it.