I disagree with this decision, not because I think it was a bad post, but because it doesn’t seem like the type of post that leads people to a more nuanced or better view of any of the things discussed, much less a post that provided insight or better understanding of critical things in the broader world. It was enjoyable, but not what I’d like to see more of on Less Wrong.
(Note: I posted this response primarily because I saw that lots of others also disagreed with this, and think it’s worth having on the record why at least one of us did so.)
FWIW when I was having these conversations with my clients, I was explicitly thinking of the exact same ideas presented in the Sequences. I do think that overall, LW would benefit from a higher appreciation of deception and how it can manifest in the real world. The scenarios I outlined are almost cartoonish, but they’re very real, and I thought it useful to demonstrate how I used very basic rationalist tools to uncover lies.
But I didn’t see where you “demonstrate how I used very basic rationalist tools to uncover lies,” which could have improved the post, and I don’t think this really explored any underappreciated parts of “deception and how it can manifest in the real world”—which I agree is underappreciated. Unfortunately, this post didn’t provide much clarity about how to find it, or how to think about it. So again, it’s a fine post, good stories, and I agree they illustrate being more confused by fiction than reality, and other rationalist virtues, but as I said, it was not “the type of post that leads people to a more nuanced or better view of any of the things discussed.”
I disagree with this decision, not because I think it was a bad post, but because it doesn’t seem like the type of post that leads people to a more nuanced or better view of any of the things discussed, much less a post that provided insight or better understanding of critical things in the broader world. It was enjoyable, but not what I’d like to see more of on Less Wrong.
(Note: I posted this response primarily because I saw that lots of others also disagreed with this, and think it’s worth having on the record why at least one of us did so.)
FWIW when I was having these conversations with my clients, I was explicitly thinking of the exact same ideas presented in the Sequences. I do think that overall, LW would benefit from a higher appreciation of deception and how it can manifest in the real world. The scenarios I outlined are almost cartoonish, but they’re very real, and I thought it useful to demonstrate how I used very basic rationalist tools to uncover lies.
Again, I think it was a fine and enjoyable post.
But I didn’t see where you “demonstrate how I used very basic rationalist tools to uncover lies,” which could have improved the post, and I don’t think this really explored any underappreciated parts of “deception and how it can manifest in the real world”—which I agree is underappreciated. Unfortunately, this post didn’t provide much clarity about how to find it, or how to think about it. So again, it’s a fine post, good stories, and I agree they illustrate being more confused by fiction than reality, and other rationalist virtues, but as I said, it was not “the type of post that leads people to a more nuanced or better view of any of the things discussed.”
I’d be pretty interested in the non-cartoonish version, also from people who are more competent and savvy.