Let me start by saying that I am very disappointed and have lost a lot of my trust in effective altruism organizations. Effective altruists say they will help far away parts of the world, but they don't seem to be able to help each other properly. Some may argue that we are excluded from help because we are citizens of wealthy countries, but I believe that we cannot help others when we do not even possess the basic virtue of helping one another (yes, I am appealing to virtue ethics).
Problem of signaling
If there's one thing I really learned from Robin Hanson, it's the importance of signaling. For us, signaling is important, and values are determined by culture, not philosophy. We simply say, “I am an effective altruist!!” Don't expect people to unconditionally believe in and support your goals. The reason for FHI's recent closure is unclear, but it seems clear that coordination with the outside world was poor.
We need advocates. Just because each person writes their own opinion does not mean that all opinions are carefully evaluated and analyzed, and experience has shown that many opinions gain attention quickly and then cool off quickly. I'd like to run a blog where I'll organize and review not only our main ideas (which are already discussed at length) but also the little experiences on the outskirts. I don't want to fall into the trap of rationality and only write in an academic tone.
I've read many articles on Substack and visited numerous blogs of people involved in effective altruism, but the ideas still seem strange and incomprehensible. I want communication with the outside world. I don't want EA to become an isolated tribalism, or for the LW to become a cult.
Communicating with people generally contradicts utilitarianism
Many of our values are neither rational nor altruistic. People on the outside don't or don't accept it so easily (see the OpenAI incident). I don't know many people here, but I'm worried. Yes, they are doing a good job. But there is still a wider world.
I believe that in order for us to get along with others (yes, I believe there are a lot of nerds here, and I understand they are very bad at getting along with people), we need to work hard at small talk. Isn’t lesswrong’s main page too dull? What is your favorite vegetarian meal? What song inspires you the most? How did you go about dating within EA? We have enough knowledge, but we lack wisdom. I suggest that you write to accumulate wisdom that comes from experience. There is no trust without self-disclosure.
great. Now let’s get back to the team for the blog. Currently, EA organizations use people as a means to a common goal. I cannot agree. Organizations must be a means to achieve people's goals. I'm not sure whether other organizations give much autonomy to EA individuals, but I believe that writing is the space where I can have the most autonomy in the early stages, and it fits my personality best, so I'm proposing a project like this.
I expect people to be able to support each other while being fully recognized for their individual contributions. Karma, sorry, is not the way to acknowledge contributions. We're ridiculously bad at number sense, and I believe it's unlikely to improve anytime soon.
People are free to write, but they are not obliged to read. Members who can get feedback from people are blessed. But if we get a little closer to each other, we can create an obligation to listen to each other.
great! This is the sketch. I have currently written about 60 short articles on My Blog (in Korean!). I still struggle with writing and have failed at many projects. This is incredibly hard work!! I wondered why many blogs don't upload well.
So what on earth do you do? I don't know!! Yes, that's it. I want people to learn it with me. Yes, I want someone like me who will write with me freely while taking some of the personal pressure off me!
Still, it would be conscientious to write down a few possible plans, right?
We can..
Make an substack
resume EA and LW post summaries
A collection of various personal blog posts.
Phew, I did this for almost an hour!! I hope someone recognizes my hard work!
If you're interested in this idea, message me or leave a comment.