This sounds interesting, although I would prefer to support your assertions with more evidence. But seems like you used education as a synonym or a proxy for sanity, which doesn’t seem so obvious to me.
Yes, it certainly is too short. I fear some of my writing is too long-winded, and wanted to try the whole “most blog posts should be a tweet” thing. Evidently, this is not the most effective strategy.
I don’t intend to use education as interchangeable for sanity. Here “sane ideology” is just a cultural belief that maximizes utility. The three ideologies here are: “education is not worth it”, “pursue education according to your ability”, “get a masters as long as you’re not brain dead,” which are espoused by much of the lower, middle, and upper classes, respectively.
My claim is that the middle position is the best — that wealthy and dumb individuals would actually be much happier if they learned a skilled trade and built a respectable small business than if they went to university and ended up in a low-pay, low-impact jobs program for the overeducated such as … well, I don’t want to be rude and name the sectors, but I’m sure you can fill in the gaps. Of course, it’s easier to argue that eschewing education altogether (the low-slack-enforced lower class ultimatum) is also undesirable. So, the middle class approach to education is sane insofar as it produces the best results.
Of course, insane is not quite an apt descriptor for the two tail beliefs here. However, there are other areas where the insane/sane dichotomy really is appropriate (I hesitate to introduce them, as, naturally, they are the sort of thing that induces half of the population to froth at the mouth).
In retrospect, this may be the fatal flaw in attempting to introduce something like this. In order to properly provide evidence for an insane/sane split, one would necessarily have to pick an example that is culture-wars radioactive. It’s my understanding that doing so is against site policy/norms, so I’m not sure how to approach this.
Of course, insane is not quite an apt descriptor for the two tail beliefs here. However, there are other areas where the insane/sane dichotomy really is appropriate (I hesitate to introduce them, as, naturally, they are the sort of thing that induces half of the population to froth at the mouth).
In retrospect, this may be the fatal flaw in attempting to introduce something like this. In order to properly provide evidence for an insane/sane split, one would necessarily have to pick an example that is culture-wars radioactive. It’s my understanding that doing so is against site policy/norms, so I’m not sure how to approach this.
Does that really follow? From my perspective a lot of the culture war stuff misses the point. Sometimes both sides have a good reasons to be upset with the other, but arguments are soldiers. Sometimes both sides are wrong and there’s a third way that isn’t even part of the conversation. The current rationalist culture disagrees with the mainstream on numerous points, but not necessarily in ways that fall into the Overton window.
It’s difficult to talk about this so abstractly with no examples. Are there any examples you could use that the rationalists already mostly seem to agree on? Is it possible you’re simply wrong about these? Have you considered double-cruxing?
Perhaps you could introduce it allegorically? Write a fictional story illustrating the point. The insane probably won’t get it.
than if they went to university and ended up in a low-pay, low-impact jobs program for the overeducated such as … well, I don’t want to be rude and name the sectors, but I’m sure you can fill in the gaps.
Bullshit Jobs? It’s not entirely obvious to me what you’re referring to.
Bullshit jobs are a lot of it. I’d add anything in media, a lot of academia (shocking numbers of those who’d be better off running a plumbing business in some depts), and non-profit / political activism stuff
This sounds interesting, although I would prefer to support your assertions with more evidence. But seems like you used education as a synonym or a proxy for sanity, which doesn’t seem so obvious to me.
Yes, it certainly is too short. I fear some of my writing is too long-winded, and wanted to try the whole “most blog posts should be a tweet” thing. Evidently, this is not the most effective strategy.
I don’t intend to use education as interchangeable for sanity. Here “sane ideology” is just a cultural belief that maximizes utility. The three ideologies here are: “education is not worth it”, “pursue education according to your ability”, “get a masters as long as you’re not brain dead,” which are espoused by much of the lower, middle, and upper classes, respectively.
My claim is that the middle position is the best — that wealthy and dumb individuals would actually be much happier if they learned a skilled trade and built a respectable small business than if they went to university and ended up in a low-pay, low-impact jobs program for the overeducated such as … well, I don’t want to be rude and name the sectors, but I’m sure you can fill in the gaps. Of course, it’s easier to argue that eschewing education altogether (the low-slack-enforced lower class ultimatum) is also undesirable. So, the middle class approach to education is sane insofar as it produces the best results.
Of course, insane is not quite an apt descriptor for the two tail beliefs here. However, there are other areas where the insane/sane dichotomy really is appropriate (I hesitate to introduce them, as, naturally, they are the sort of thing that induces half of the population to froth at the mouth).
In retrospect, this may be the fatal flaw in attempting to introduce something like this. In order to properly provide evidence for an insane/sane split, one would necessarily have to pick an example that is culture-wars radioactive. It’s my understanding that doing so is against site policy/norms, so I’m not sure how to approach this.
Does that really follow? From my perspective a lot of the culture war stuff misses the point. Sometimes both sides have a good reasons to be upset with the other, but arguments are soldiers. Sometimes both sides are wrong and there’s a third way that isn’t even part of the conversation. The current rationalist culture disagrees with the mainstream on numerous points, but not necessarily in ways that fall into the Overton window.
It’s difficult to talk about this so abstractly with no examples. Are there any examples you could use that the rationalists already mostly seem to agree on? Is it possible you’re simply wrong about these? Have you considered double-cruxing?
Perhaps you could introduce it allegorically? Write a fictional story illustrating the point. The insane probably won’t get it.
Bullshit Jobs? It’s not entirely obvious to me what you’re referring to.
Bullshit jobs are a lot of it. I’d add anything in media, a lot of academia (shocking numbers of those who’d be better off running a plumbing business in some depts), and non-profit / political activism stuff