“resist blackmail” does not mean escape the consequences or get the good outcome for free. TDT agents resist blackmail by accepting the consequences, in those universes where the blackmailer was honest. But they don’t encounter universes with blackmailers nearly as often, because it’s known that blackmailing them doesn’t work.
It doesn’t matter what decision theory is behind the blackmail, and in most presentations the agent in question doesn’t have any way to determine it.
Would a TDT agent also just always send all possible blackmail to other agents, independently of whether they think it gets accepted or not, and just live with the consequences? They might want to do that, because if they did, then they would encounter less universes in which their blackmails get rejected, because it’s known that rejecting their blackmail doesn’t disincentivize them from sending it. Like, I don’t believe TDT actually recommends that, but it’s the same logic that justifies rejecting all blackmail.
In any case, the decision theory of the blackmailer does slightly matter. For example if you have a genuinely stupid blackmailer who just always sends blackmail no matter what happens, then there is really no reason to reject the blackmail. Rejecting the blackmail of a genuinely stupid agent doesn’t reduce the number universes in which you receive blackmail.
“resist blackmail” does not mean escape the consequences or get the good outcome for free. TDT agents resist blackmail by accepting the consequences, in those universes where the blackmailer was honest. But they don’t encounter universes with blackmailers nearly as often, because it’s known that blackmailing them doesn’t work.
It doesn’t matter what decision theory is behind the blackmail, and in most presentations the agent in question doesn’t have any way to determine it.
Would a TDT agent also just always send all possible blackmail to other agents, independently of whether they think it gets accepted or not, and just live with the consequences?
They might want to do that, because if they did, then they would encounter less universes in which their blackmails get rejected, because it’s known that rejecting their blackmail doesn’t disincentivize them from sending it.
Like, I don’t believe TDT actually recommends that, but it’s the same logic that justifies rejecting all blackmail.
In any case, the decision theory of the blackmailer does slightly matter.
For example if you have a genuinely stupid blackmailer who just always sends blackmail no matter what happens, then there is really no reason to reject the blackmail. Rejecting the blackmail of a genuinely stupid agent doesn’t reduce the number universes in which you receive blackmail.