4 ms·
Just my 2 cents: A philosophy differs from an ideology. Long-termism is a philosophy, meaning an abstract framework that is used an intellectual aid. An ideolo
by ETH_start 3y ago
Just my 2 cents:
A philosophy differs from an ideology. Long-termism is a philosophy, meaning an abstract framework that is used an intellectual aid. An ideology, on the otherhand, is an all-encompassing world view, that inserts itself at the top of one's value hierarchy, and allows one to do as you describe: define any wrong as a necessary evil to fulfil the greater good.
The reason long-termism is merely a philosophy, and will remain so, is that it doesn't provide a narrative that lends itself to ideological zealotry. Ideological narratives are simplistic models of the world that can be easily digested, and provide a ready litmus test to categorize any person into one of three groups: victims, villains, or saviors.
- ahelwer 3y agoThe truest mark of an ideology is that its adherents don't even think they're being ideological, just reasonable.
- ETH_start 3y agoEveryone thinks they're being reasonable.. and just for context: I don't put much stock in long-termism, but not because I see it as a potentially dangerous ideological dogma, but because I don't see it as that useful. In my opinion, the tendency of the optimal action for short-term interests to coincide with the optimal action for long-term interests, and how much easier it is to determine the former over the latter, makes it better to focus primarily on the near future, with a less-well-defined long-term objective being used only to orient one's general direction.