Agreed that ultimately everything is reverse-engineered, because we don’t live in a vacuum.
My point was not that we don’t live in a vacuum, but that there’s no ground truth or “correct” model. We’re ONLY extrapolating from very limited experienced examples, not understanding anything fundamental.
For example, consider the contrast between “we should always strive to treat others fairly” and “we should treat others fairly when they are more powerful than us, however if they are weaker let us then do to them whatever is in our best interest whether or not it is unfair, while at the same time paying lip service to fairness in hopes that we cajole those more powerful than us into treating us fairly”.
When you see the word “should”, you know you’re in preferences and modeling land, right?
My point was not that we don’t live in a vacuum, but that there’s no ground truth or “correct” model. We’re ONLY extrapolating from very limited experienced examples, not understanding anything fundamental.
When you see the word “should”, you know you’re in preferences and modeling land, right?