There are plenty of things you should still resolve to do. You don’t want to throw the baby out with the bathwater by maintaining maximum irresolution so you’ll never have difficulty changing your mind. Just change your mind when important evidence comes in—and in this case, I’m trying to point out that it is not important evidence against internalizing externalities. (It is evidence against levying the full externality cost and failing to try mitigating trades that reduce that externality cost.)
I think I basically mean it straightforwardly. In my mind it is pretty similar to other moral injunctions like “tell the truth” or “speak up for the bullied”—it is important to resolve to do it ahead of time, because in the moment it might be quite hard and costly to do so. So if someone were to start talking about how actually the bullied need to learn to stick up for themselves, etc etc, I would want to remind myself and others that while this is true, it shouldn’t change my moral resolution to stand up to bullying. (It’s perfectly fine for people to discuss whether maybe we shouldn’t stand up for them, but if someone gives an argument that doesn’t apply, or evidence that later turns out to be false, I want to again reiterate the resolution.)
Maybe this is overkill or something but I think it feels pretty straightforward to me. I think sometimes my moral resolutions do in fact get eroded by people questioning them, and not “re-committing” afterward.
There are plenty of things you should still resolve to do. You don’t want to throw the baby out with the bathwater by maintaining maximum irresolution so you’ll never have difficulty changing your mind. Just change your mind when important evidence comes in—and in this case, I’m trying to point out that it is not important evidence against internalizing externalities. (It is evidence against levying the full externality cost and failing to try mitigating trades that reduce that externality cost.)
That makes sense. I guess I’m mostly reacting to the last sentence, which adds a moral aspect.
(I’m also not 100% sure how much the last sentence is a joke, or deliberate exaggeration?)
I think I basically mean it straightforwardly. In my mind it is pretty similar to other moral injunctions like “tell the truth” or “speak up for the bullied”—it is important to resolve to do it ahead of time, because in the moment it might be quite hard and costly to do so. So if someone were to start talking about how actually the bullied need to learn to stick up for themselves, etc etc, I would want to remind myself and others that while this is true, it shouldn’t change my moral resolution to stand up to bullying. (It’s perfectly fine for people to discuss whether maybe we shouldn’t stand up for them, but if someone gives an argument that doesn’t apply, or evidence that later turns out to be false, I want to again reiterate the resolution.)
Maybe this is overkill or something but I think it feels pretty straightforward to me. I think sometimes my moral resolutions do in fact get eroded by people questioning them, and not “re-committing” afterward.