Thank you Geoffe. I agree with you. Except in the case that that kind of idealism eventually becomes a hindrance to truly doing good in the world. That's why it was naive for them to think they could do it and why it was their "original sin". Intentions are important but not more important than acts -- I'm too pragmatic to believe the opposite.
Thank you Geoffe. I agree with you. Except in the case that that kind of idealism eventually becomes a hindrance to truly doing good in the world. That's why it was naive for them to think they could do it and why it was their "original sin". Intentions are important but not more important than acts -- I'm too pragmatic to believe the opposite.
❤️ That actually clears up your argument a bit. The Voltaire quote comes to mind, “Perfect is the enemy of the good” and I probably should have gotten that from the main article.
The scary part-the part that sucks to entrust to anyone else, much less to people prioritizing profit-is:
1. What is the definition of good?
2. How big is the gap between good and perfect?
I suppose in my doomer mentality, the answer to 1 seemed like it might be “making fat stacks of cash” or “innovation for innovation’s sake” and the answer to 2 seemed limitlessly huge. Given the world shaking potential of AGI, the gap between perfect and good might indeed represent anything from ecosystem stability to quality of life (or even brutal early death) for billions.
Although, that’s starting to sound a lot like “do the damn math” effective altruism, which definitely gives me a feeling of moral revulsion too. A feeling that I think is important.
Thank you Geoffe. I agree with you. Except in the case that that kind of idealism eventually becomes a hindrance to truly doing good in the world. That's why it was naive for them to think they could do it and why it was their "original sin". Intentions are important but not more important than acts -- I'm too pragmatic to believe the opposite.
❤️ That actually clears up your argument a bit. The Voltaire quote comes to mind, “Perfect is the enemy of the good” and I probably should have gotten that from the main article.
The scary part-the part that sucks to entrust to anyone else, much less to people prioritizing profit-is:
1. What is the definition of good?
2. How big is the gap between good and perfect?
I suppose in my doomer mentality, the answer to 1 seemed like it might be “making fat stacks of cash” or “innovation for innovation’s sake” and the answer to 2 seemed limitlessly huge. Given the world shaking potential of AGI, the gap between perfect and good might indeed represent anything from ecosystem stability to quality of life (or even brutal early death) for billions.
Although, that’s starting to sound a lot like “do the damn math” effective altruism, which definitely gives me a feeling of moral revulsion too. A feeling that I think is important.
Hard to say.