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> To me, these “endless textual revisions and supposed clarifications” sounded suspiciously like thinking. How do you tell the difference between earnest think
by doctorpangloss 8y ago
> To me, these “endless textual revisions and supposed clarifications” sounded suspiciously like thinking.
How do you tell the difference between earnest thinking and flip flopping, "a sudden real or apparent change of policy or opinion by a public official, sometimes while trying to claim that both positions are consistent with each other... during the period prior to or following an election in order to maximize... popularity?"
Could we at least concede that when somebody says something that makes your bullshit detector go off, and then they change what they're saying, your detector isn't broken?
- tlb 8y agoThere are two reasons people change their stories. One is that they once believed something, but later discovered they were in error and now say something else they believe to be true. The other is that they don't care about what's actually true, and are just saying whatever they think will engage or impress their listeners. Frankfurt's "On Bullshit" is a readable survey of this topic. The second kind is far more common. But the first kind is really important. When someone updates their views we should pay attention. Perhaps a member of the rationalist community could prove this using Bayes theorem.
- forapurpose 8y ago> The second kind is far more common. When you revise your software, is it usually because the earlier versions were bullshit? Anyone who isn't constantly revising their ideas either isn't trying or is bullshitting.
- nostrademons 8y agoI'd argue that human interaction occurs far more frequently than software updates.