Re: META: Dishonest debate (was "cluster bombs")

From: Peter C. McCluskey (pcm@rahul.net)
Date: Tue Jun 17 2003 - 11:12:05 MDT

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     sentience@pobox.com (Eliezer S. Yudkowsky) writes:
    >Lee Corbin wrote:
    >> Eliezer writes
    >>>- are not attempting to use "Bayesian reasoning" or even
    >>>"rationality"; they are acting on blind instinct and pure
    >>>emotion.
    >>
    >> Pure emotion? Isn't this the second time today I've caught
    >> you in gross exaggeration? What is happening to you, Eliezer?
    >> Can't you try for a little detachment here? You're making
    >> it so black and white.
    >
    >Please do not confuse my searing flame of annoyance with group
    >polarization. Quite often I become equally searingly annoyed with both
    >sides of a particularly stupid fight.

     Why shouldn't we confuse you with a human? If you were consistent about
    avoiding group polarization, wouldn't you stick to terms that describe
    the degree to which people fail to be Bayesians, rather than using a word
    such as "pure"?

     Why are the fights stupid? Are the people engaged in them being hurt by
    their participation in them? My guess is that they are on average being
    successful at advertising themselves to members of their groups as being
    altruistic, loyal, or something like that, and aren't being significantly
    hurt by the fact that they are annoying the more Bayesian list members.
    I think "pandering to a rather unsophisticated tribe" might be a better
    way of describing what's wrong with the fight.

    -- 
    ------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Peter McCluskey          | "To announce that there must be no criticism of
    http://www.rahul.net/pcm | the President, or that we are to stand by the
                             | President right or wrong, is not only unpatriotic
                             | and servile, but morally treasonable to the
                             | American public." - Theodore Roosevelt
    


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