I think that defocussing a bit and taking the outside view for a second might be clarifying, so let’s not talk about what it is exactly that people do.
Kaj Sotala says that he has identified something which constitutes a major problem source, with exemplary problems a) - f), all very real problems like failing charities and people being unable to work from home.
Then you come, and say “there is no problem here,” that everything boils down to us just using the wrong definition of motivation (or something). But what’s with the charities that can’t find anyone to do their mucky jobs? What’s with the people who could offer great service and/or reduce their working hours by working from home, if only they could get themselves to do it? Where does your argument solve these problems?
The reason I reacted to your post was not that I saw the exact flaw in your argument. The reason I answered is that I saw that your argument doesn’t solve the problem at hand; in fact, it fails to even recognize it in the first place.
I think that you are probably overvaluing criticism. If so, you can increase the usefulness of your thoughts significantly if you stop yourself from paying much attention to flaws and try to identify the heart of the material first, and only apply criticism afterwards, and even then only if it’s worth it.
Sorry, but I am only refining the statement I made from the start, which in my view is still perfectly relevant to the material. You don’t agree with me, now let’s not loose too much time on meta-discussions...
I understand your concern about the problems mentioned in the article, and your feeling that I don’t address them. You’re right, I don’t: my feeling about these problems is that they occur in complex situations where lots of actors are involved, and i am not convinced at all that they result from a lack of motivation or a problem of unconscious motivation hijacking.
I think that defocussing a bit and taking the outside view for a second might be clarifying, so let’s not talk about what it is exactly that people do.
Kaj Sotala says that he has identified something which constitutes a major problem source, with exemplary problems a) - f), all very real problems like failing charities and people being unable to work from home. Then you come, and say “there is no problem here,” that everything boils down to us just using the wrong definition of motivation (or something). But what’s with the charities that can’t find anyone to do their mucky jobs? What’s with the people who could offer great service and/or reduce their working hours by working from home, if only they could get themselves to do it? Where does your argument solve these problems?
The reason I reacted to your post was not that I saw the exact flaw in your argument. The reason I answered is that I saw that your argument doesn’t solve the problem at hand; in fact, it fails to even recognize it in the first place.
I think that you are probably overvaluing criticism. If so, you can increase the usefulness of your thoughts significantly if you stop yourself from paying much attention to flaws and try to identify the heart of the material first, and only apply criticism afterwards, and even then only if it’s worth it.
Sorry, but I am only refining the statement I made from the start, which in my view is still perfectly relevant to the material. You don’t agree with me, now let’s not loose too much time on meta-discussions...
I understand your concern about the problems mentioned in the article, and your feeling that I don’t address them. You’re right, I don’t: my feeling about these problems is that they occur in complex situations where lots of actors are involved, and i am not convinced at all that they result from a lack of motivation or a problem of unconscious motivation hijacking.