I had this argument with AngryParsley (who also drives a motorcycle); he claimed, IIRC, that the motorcycle figures are inflated by drunk driving, and that for people who didn’t drink and were safety-conscious, the figures were much less pessimistic.
I’m sure the motorcycle figures are skewed by a lot of things. Compared to the average automobile driver, motorcycle riders disproportionately tend to be young males (like Luke), and probably young males who really, really want to show off by tempting death (maybe not so much like Luke). My impression is that the Bay Area in Northern California, partly because of high population density and a lack of parking, has a lot of people who choose to ride motorcycles for relatively practical reasons, and who also log far fewer miles than the average automobile driver.
With that said, there are added costs to motorcycle use. If you’re going to ride responsibly, you really have to wear the full safety gear each and every time. That’s not always convenient. You can’t carry very much, even compared to what you can fit in a subcompact car. It rains sometimes. In my experience, motorcycles seem to need a lot of maintenance compared to the more reliable inexpensive cars. On the plus side, gasoline expenses are tiny. And a utilitarian should be happy that that your added risk of injury in the event of a crash is offset by the fact that the low mass of a motorcycle compared to a car means that you’re less likely to hurt someone else. And should a rationalist care if riding a motorcycle is cool?
With that said, I’d suggest that being seen riding a motorcycle tends to make you a less convincing advocate for cryonics.
ETA: I note that one of the job requirements for the executive assistant position is “own a car.”
But I wonder how much of the cool factor of motorcycling is dependent on the conspicuous display of risking death. I’m a former motorcycle rider myself, by the way. I sure as hell thought I was cool at the time, although in retrospect, I’m not so sure my acquaintances were so swept away as me.
In earlier ages, acceptance of the inevitability of death was the mark of a rationalist—real, absolute death, with no afterlife. Clear-eyed acceptance of a bitter truth. These days, however, Eliezer has strongly associated SIAI with the assurance that death is no longer inevitable.
Luke is now one of the public representatives of SIAI. His revealed preferences are at least interesting to those of us on the outside.
There’s definitely some aspect of that, though you can get 625cc scooters which are quite powerful, yet conspicuously less cool than a 250cc Honda Rebel.
Yup. It’s an important point that a motorcycle is a more reasonable decision in the Bay Area (particularly San Francisco) than much of the rest of the USA, for much the same reason that motorcycles/scooters are strictly dominant over cars for everyday use in much of Asia.
Also, in San Francisco, if you look at death maps of motorcyclists, highway onramps are the most dangerous aspect of being a motorcylist. I expect awareness of that and extra caution on and around onramps goes a long way.
I had this argument with AngryParsley (who also drives a motorcycle); he claimed, IIRC, that the motorcycle figures are inflated by drunk driving, and that for people who didn’t drink and were safety-conscious, the figures were much less pessimistic.
I’m sure the motorcycle figures are skewed by a lot of things. Compared to the average automobile driver, motorcycle riders disproportionately tend to be young males (like Luke), and probably young males who really, really want to show off by tempting death (maybe not so much like Luke). My impression is that the Bay Area in Northern California, partly because of high population density and a lack of parking, has a lot of people who choose to ride motorcycles for relatively practical reasons, and who also log far fewer miles than the average automobile driver.
With that said, there are added costs to motorcycle use. If you’re going to ride responsibly, you really have to wear the full safety gear each and every time. That’s not always convenient. You can’t carry very much, even compared to what you can fit in a subcompact car. It rains sometimes. In my experience, motorcycles seem to need a lot of maintenance compared to the more reliable inexpensive cars. On the plus side, gasoline expenses are tiny. And a utilitarian should be happy that that your added risk of injury in the event of a crash is offset by the fact that the low mass of a motorcycle compared to a car means that you’re less likely to hurt someone else. And should a rationalist care if riding a motorcycle is cool?
With that said, I’d suggest that being seen riding a motorcycle tends to make you a less convincing advocate for cryonics.
ETA: I note that one of the job requirements for the executive assistant position is “own a car.”
Absolutely, if doing cool things increases their chances of achieving their goals.
I do not disagree!
But I wonder how much of the cool factor of motorcycling is dependent on the conspicuous display of risking death. I’m a former motorcycle rider myself, by the way. I sure as hell thought I was cool at the time, although in retrospect, I’m not so sure my acquaintances were so swept away as me.
In earlier ages, acceptance of the inevitability of death was the mark of a rationalist—real, absolute death, with no afterlife. Clear-eyed acceptance of a bitter truth. These days, however, Eliezer has strongly associated SIAI with the assurance that death is no longer inevitable.
Luke is now one of the public representatives of SIAI. His revealed preferences are at least interesting to those of us on the outside.
There’s definitely some aspect of that, though you can get 625cc scooters which are quite powerful, yet conspicuously less cool than a 250cc Honda Rebel.
Yup. It’s an important point that a motorcycle is a more reasonable decision in the Bay Area (particularly San Francisco) than much of the rest of the USA, for much the same reason that motorcycles/scooters are strictly dominant over cars for everyday use in much of Asia.
I hear the expense of having to buy new tires frequently outweighs the gas savings.
Also, in San Francisco, if you look at death maps of motorcyclists, highway onramps are the most dangerous aspect of being a motorcylist. I expect awareness of that and extra caution on and around onramps goes a long way.