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“Virtue signaling” is when you don’t take meaningful action. The article author went out of their way to take meaningful action.

by layer8 3mo ago

woopwoop 3mo ago
I'm like the Japanese soldier who kept fighting into the 1970s on this, but actually signalling is about taking costly action. When people call something virtue signalling what they usually mean is that it's cheap talk, but this is wrong. The whole point of signalling is that it's costly. A more correct application of virtue signalling would be something like those people who contort their lives to genuinely try to produce zero garbage. This is a truly costly action, but it is signalling in the sense that it is more about showing that one cares by being effortful than actually doing something effectual.
- dpark 3mo ago
  > When people call something virtue signalling what they usually mean is that it's cheap talk, but this is wrong. The whole point of signalling is that it's costly. What? Signaling is not costly. It’s literally a display, a signal.
  - directevolve 3mo ago
    Cost makes signals credible. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Signalling_(economics) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Signalling_(economics) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Costly_signaling_theory_in_evolutionary_psychology https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Costly_signaling_theory_in_evo...
    - dpark 3mo ago
      This is getting way into the weeds but the fact that costly signals are more trustworthy doesn’t mean all signals are costly. An “in this house we believe” sign is signaling but if you live in a liberal neighborhood it’s extremely low cost by all measures.
- gosub100 3mo ago
  > The whole point of signalling is that it's costly No, it costs nothing to change your twitter icon to the Ukraine flag or make a video about some moral cause, or change your language due to the next political language policing. None of those things are costly.

“Virtue signaling” is when you don’t take meaningful action. The article author went out of their way to take meaningful action.

by layer8 3mo ago

“Virtue signaling” is when you don’t take meaningful action. The article author went out of their way to take meaningful action.

woopwoop 3mo ago

I'm like the Japanese soldier who kept fighting into the 1970s on this, but actually signalling is about taking costly action. When people call something virtue signalling what they usually mean is that it's cheap talk, but this is wrong. The whole point of signalling is that it's costly. A more correct application of virtue signalling would be something like those people who contort their lives to genuinely try to produce zero garbage. This is a truly costly action, but it is signalling in the sense that it is more about showing that one cares by being effortful than actually doing something effectual.

dpark 3mo ago
> When people call something virtue signalling what they usually mean is that it's cheap talk, but this is wrong. The whole point of signalling is that it's costly. What? Signaling is not costly. It’s literally a display, a signal.
- directevolve 3mo ago
  Cost makes signals credible. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Signalling_(economics) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Signalling_(economics) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Costly_signaling_theory_in_evolutionary_psychology https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Costly_signaling_theory_in_evo...
  - dpark 3mo ago
    This is getting way into the weeds but the fact that costly signals are more trustworthy doesn’t mean all signals are costly. An “in this house we believe” sign is signaling but if you live in a liberal neighborhood it’s extremely low cost by all measures.
gosub100 3mo ago
> The whole point of signalling is that it's costly No, it costs nothing to change your twitter icon to the Ukraine flag or make a video about some moral cause, or change your language due to the next political language policing. None of those things are costly.