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In a Twitter thread regarding a poll whether people would press a button that gives them a million dollars but kills a random person somewhere in the world, and

In a Twitter thread regarding a poll whether people would press a button that gives them a million dollars but kills a random person somewhere in the world, and whether or not they are an EA, Eliezer Yudkowsky had this to say: > It's going three-quarters of the way from deontology to consequentialism and then stopping, is what it is. I'm actually quite serious there; I don't know how to use a million dollars to save the world, and barring that, I'm not throwing away my deontology for it. The poll: https://twitter.com/Aella_Girl/status/1592598275366195201?s=20 https://twitter.com/Aella_Girl/status/1592598275366195201?s=...

dinosaurdynasty 4y ago
I imagine a lot of people would press the button for selfish reasons, a million dollars is a big deal
- h0l0cube 4y ago
  It's hard to know, which is what makes it a compelling thought experiment. I'd say I have a pretty consequentialist mindset in the abstract, but without a figurative or literal 'gun to my head' I'm not sure I would extinguish a life. I'd have to wake up to that for the rest of my life. I think also if people knew such a button exists, they'd seek to destroy it before it hurts themselves or people close to them.
  - dinosaurdynasty 4y ago
    I'm going to add a pretty cynical/self-centered take. I do think most people would have some level of self anguish. However it would not be -$1 million worth of self anguish, especially considering it's someone you've never met and would've never met. (Honestly I would probably forget most of the time.) It also wouldn't match the anguish of many many years of corporate golden handcuffs. When I think a million dollars I don't think "ah, cool" I think "this is a significant fraction of what it takes to buy my freedom".
Eddy_Viscosity2 4y ago
I've also heard the response to this being (paraphrased from poor memory): "That's effectively what billionaires do, pushing that button over and over again and the random people are those that die from poor safety conditions in factories (because it meant more money for the billionaire), or by users of their products that were known to faulty but it would cost too much to do a recall, or because as workers they weren't given inadequate health benefits, or people near a factory got cancer or some other illness from poisoned land and water (because proper toxic waste disposal is expensive) and on and on they push that button over and over and over again."
- h0l0cube 4y ago
  I have to remark how peculiar it was to see this article being almost immediately throttled of the front page despite trending votes and low comment ratio. The idea that consequentialism might not be the moral high ground it’s claimed to be might cause some in Silicon Valley to bristle.

dinosaurdynasty 4y ago

I imagine a lot of people would press the button for selfish reasons, a million dollars is a big deal

h0l0cube 4y ago
It's hard to know, which is what makes it a compelling thought experiment. I'd say I have a pretty consequentialist mindset in the abstract, but without a figurative or literal 'gun to my head' I'm not sure I would extinguish a life. I'd have to wake up to that for the rest of my life. I think also if people knew such a button exists, they'd seek to destroy it before it hurts themselves or people close to them.
- dinosaurdynasty 4y ago
  I'm going to add a pretty cynical/self-centered take. I do think most people would have some level of self anguish. However it would not be -$1 million worth of self anguish, especially considering it's someone you've never met and would've never met. (Honestly I would probably forget most of the time.) It also wouldn't match the anguish of many many years of corporate golden handcuffs. When I think a million dollars I don't think "ah, cool" I think "this is a significant fraction of what it takes to buy my freedom".

Eddy_Viscosity2 4y ago

I've also heard the response to this being (paraphrased from poor memory): "That's effectively what billionaires do, pushing that button over and over again and the random people are those that die from poor safety conditions in factories (because it meant more money for the billionaire), or by users of their products that were known to faulty but it would cost too much to do a recall, or because as workers they weren't given inadequate health benefits, or people near a factory got cancer or some other illness from poisoned land and water (because proper toxic waste disposal is expensive) and on and on they push that button over and over and over again."

h0l0cube 4y ago
I have to remark how peculiar it was to see this article being almost immediately throttled of the front page despite trending votes and low comment ratio. The idea that consequentialism might not be the moral high ground it’s claimed to be might cause some in Silicon Valley to bristle.