[FRIAM] Talent and Moral Luck - Steelman attempt

[Steve Smith]

Jon -


> That is true, though not free of further consideration. Eric's steelman
> highlights a tight coupling between individual and society, tight enough
> that actions on the *negative space*[1] of society are effective actions
> induced on the individual. Similar arguments arise when we talk about
> lowering one's individual carbon footprint by not driving. Extensionally,
> this is fine but ignores the fact that computational difference amounts to
> much more than *convenience* in practice[2]. Not driving is self-gimping and
> only makes it harder to influence the necessary change.

This is a good place to insert some aphorisms:

    "sometimes the most you can do is nothing"

    "less is more"

maybe "what needs to be done" is back down our leverage ( kind of like
limiting the killing power of weapons in the hands of individuals, or
the performance/wastefulness of other technologies with known bad
side-effects... automobiles, water-wasting systems, etc.).

I understand the arguments of not losing ground against competitors, but
that evokes arms-race, red-queen, and race-to-the bottom.

> That said and in further response to Barry, to treat Trump as a felon (which
> he likely ought be) and to exact this judgment through indirect means sets a
> dangerous precedent by ignoring type. However, maybe this is what we want
> our society to be like? I think I must be ok with the idea that it is
> *mobsters all the way down*, but again, I keep hearing idealistic talk of
> ethics on this server.

World as Lover, World as Self, World as Battleground, World as Trap:

    https://tricycle.org/magazine/world-lover-world-self/

I don't think of any of this as "ethics" proper, just a larger view of
consequences including: "what kind of world do I want to live in?"

- Steve

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