I will miss all of you, stuck in the middle of the mind killer out here in DC, literally spending my time mapping bureaucratic processes and how they interact.
Some of my unpopular opinions (for a lesswrong meetup:)
1) Most stereotypes are useful cognitive shortcuts, but are largely damaging and should be replaced with less efficient cognitive methods when considering actions in public.
2) The excessive focus on philosophy, while fun, is damaging in terms of how rationality is discussed outside of explicitly Rationalist circles.
3) Currently in the world, religion is a net positive, and the increasing secularization of society has led to a damaging cycle where the gap created by people no longer participating in explicitly religious groups allows many people who now exploit society to do so, and they would otherwise be constrained from doing so.
Currently in the world, religion is a net positive, and the increasing secularization of society has led to a damaging cycle where the gap created by people no longer participating in explicitly religious groups allows many people who now exploit society to do so, and they would otherwise be constrained from doing so.
50 years ago, Investment bankers had to walk into the Church at the end of the week, and if the pastor/community found out that they had been involved in insider trading, their social lives were over.( Social pressure was a powerful motivator when social groups were near-mandatory religious affiliations.)
Similarly, presidents, senators, and other political figures used to need to attend church every week, and they would have been subject to extreme social pressure if it was clear that they were uninterested in the public welfare.
I will miss all of you, stuck in the middle of the mind killer out here in DC, literally spending my time mapping bureaucratic processes and how they interact.
Some of my unpopular opinions (for a lesswrong meetup:) 1) Most stereotypes are useful cognitive shortcuts, but are largely damaging and should be replaced with less efficient cognitive methods when considering actions in public. 2) The excessive focus on philosophy, while fun, is damaging in terms of how rationality is discussed outside of explicitly Rationalist circles. 3) Currently in the world, religion is a net positive, and the increasing secularization of society has led to a damaging cycle where the gap created by people no longer participating in explicitly religious groups allows many people who now exploit society to do so, and they would otherwise be constrained from doing so.
Examples?
50 years ago, Investment bankers had to walk into the Church at the end of the week, and if the pastor/community found out that they had been involved in insider trading, their social lives were over.( Social pressure was a powerful motivator when social groups were near-mandatory religious affiliations.)
Similarly, presidents, senators, and other political figures used to need to attend church every week, and they would have been subject to extreme social pressure if it was clear that they were uninterested in the public welfare.