RE: thinking about the unthinkable

From: Lee Corbin (lcorbin@tsoft.com)
Date: Wed Jul 30 2003 - 21:18:10 MDT

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    Rafal writes

    > [Hal wrote]
    > > Logic and reason have as some of their main benefits the ability to
    > > reconcile conflicting views. If people can agree on their premises,
    > > then ideally, using logic, they can come to agreement on their
    > > conclusions.
    > >
    > > But how can this work with emotions, with instincts? Suppose I don't
    > > share the senator's repugnance? Which of us is right, and which is
    > > wrong? What mechanism can we use to resolve these differences of
    > > opinion?
    > >
    > > I suppose, in practice, we would just say that majority rules. If
    > > most people share the moral repugnance of the Senators, then they are
    > > right. If instead people instinctively thought that the market's
    > > potential benefits were worthy enough, then the supporters of the
    > > futures market are right.
    > >
    > > I'm not that happy with a rule like this, that the majority is always
    > > right. But what else can we do?
    >
    > ### Use some form of consequentialist ethics to derive rules of conduct
    > independently of intuitions about the propriety of majority rule.

    I'm always impressed with your urge to create new systems from whole
    cloth. Do you think that you might have been a follower of Lenin in
    the early days?

    Actually, I doubt that ideal systems exist for humans as presently (or
    probably ever) constituted. But even if they did, how would we ever
    adopt one? This is the key to understanding the situation IMO. We
    clearly couldn't just "vote" on it in a referendum, for reasons I
    hope are obvious to everyone here.

    We ought to be proud of the political accomplishments of the last
    four hundred years. We need to respect the traditions thus evolved,
    and slowly guide them towards the main chances that we see. (On this
    list, those main chances include immortality, great happiness for
    great numbers of people, and advancing evolution towards information
    singularity.) We simply have to convince as many others as possible
    that this is the best course, and getting their willing advice and
    consent.

    Lee

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