What I do think is that the humans are not acting according to their `real’ preferences, and that they would realize this if they understood Eliezer’s arguments.
Human real preferences aren’t utility based, not even close, and this is a big potential problem. So they have to make their preferences closer to a utility function, using some methods or other. But humans never should act according to their messy ‘real’ preferences.
What moral status do you attach to humans who do not currently exist, but definitely will exist in the future?
Same as I do to people today. Simple heuristic: any choice that causes increased utility to any agent that exists at any time is always positive—giving a dollar to somebody in two generation is good, whoever they are.
On the other hand, choices that increase or decrease the number of agents—giving birth to that person in two generations or not—are more complicated.
Oh yes, I’ve seen it—I think the author pointed it out to me. It’s a nice point, but it doesn’t even undermine average utilitarianism. It only undermines particularly naive “birth means nothing” arguments.
I simply take the position that “only the preferences of people currently existing at the time they have those preferences are relevant” (this means that your current preferences about what happens after you die are relevant, but not your preferences “before you were born”). That leaves a lot of flexibility...
Human real preferences aren’t utility based, not even close, and this is a big potential problem. So they have to make their preferences closer to a utility function, using some methods or other. But humans never should act according to their messy ‘real’ preferences.
Same as I do to people today. Simple heuristic: any choice that causes increased utility to any agent that exists at any time is always positive—giving a dollar to somebody in two generation is good, whoever they are.
On the other hand, choices that increase or decrease the number of agents—giving birth to that person in two generations or not—are more complicated.
Thanks!
Have you seen http://meteuphoric.wordpress.com/2011/03/13/if-birth-is-worth-nothing-births-are-worth-anything/ ? It may help you notice any inconsistencies between possible utility functions and your values.
Oh yes, I’ve seen it—I think the author pointed it out to me. It’s a nice point, but it doesn’t even undermine average utilitarianism. It only undermines particularly naive “birth means nothing” arguments.
I simply take the position that “only the preferences of people currently existing at the time they have those preferences are relevant” (this means that your current preferences about what happens after you die are relevant, but not your preferences “before you were born”). That leaves a lot of flexibility...
Of course it doesn’t apply to many forms of average utilitarianism. It just struck me as a useful consistency check.