I’m not at all saying the experiences of a person in a low-weight world are less valuable than a person in a high-weight world. Just that when you are considering possible futures in a decision-theoretic framework you need to apply the weights (because weight is equivalent to probability).
Wallace’s useful achievement in this context is to show that there exists a set of axioms that makes this work, and this includes branch-indifference.
This is useful because makes clear the way in which the branch-counting approach you’re suggesting is in conflict with decision theory. So I don’t disagree that you can care about the number of your thin instances, but what I’m saying is in that case you need to accept that this makes decision theory and probably consequentialist ethics impossible in your framework.
It doesn’t matter whether you call your multiplier “probability” or “value” if it results in your decision to not care about low-measure branch. The only difference is that probability is supposed to be about knowledge, and Wallace’s argument involving arbitrary assumption, not only physics, means it’s not probability, but value—there is no reason to value knowledge of your low-measure instances less.
this makes decision theory and probably consequentialist ethics impossible in your framework
It doesn’t? Nothing stops you from making decisions in a world where you are constantly splitting. You can try to maximize splits of good experiences or something. It just wouldn’t be the same decisions you would make without knowledge of splits, but why new physical knowledge shouldn’t change your decisions?
I’m not at all saying the experiences of a person in a low-weight world are less valuable than a person in a high-weight world. Just that when you are considering possible futures in a decision-theoretic framework you need to apply the weights (because weight is equivalent to probability).
Wallace’s useful achievement in this context is to show that there exists a set of axioms that makes this work, and this includes branch-indifference.
This is useful because makes clear the way in which the branch-counting approach you’re suggesting is in conflict with decision theory. So I don’t disagree that you can care about the number of your thin instances, but what I’m saying is in that case you need to accept that this makes decision theory and probably consequentialist ethics impossible in your framework.
It doesn’t matter whether you call your multiplier “probability” or “value” if it results in your decision to not care about low-measure branch. The only difference is that probability is supposed to be about knowledge, and Wallace’s argument involving arbitrary assumption, not only physics, means it’s not probability, but value—there is no reason to value knowledge of your low-measure instances less.
It doesn’t? Nothing stops you from making decisions in a world where you are constantly splitting. You can try to maximize splits of good experiences or something. It just wouldn’t be the same decisions you would make without knowledge of splits, but why new physical knowledge shouldn’t change your decisions?