Effective Altruism: An Introduction – 80,000 Hours (April 2021) Five: Prof Will MacAskill on moral uncertainty, utilitarianism & how to avoid being a moral monster
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Apr 12, 2021 AI Snips
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History Suggests We Are Mistaken
- History shows intelligent people held abhorrent moral views, so our own common-sense likely contains deep mistakes.
- That supports moral views critical of common sense like utilitarianism and more emphasis on moral research.
Bentham, Mill Versus Kant
- MacAskill contrasts Bentham and Mill's progressive predictions with Kant's abhorrent beliefs.
- He uses these histories to argue utilitarianism historically corrected common-sense errors.
Track Record And Veil Arguments
- Raw track record matters: moral theories that historically produced progressive reforms gain credibility.
- MacAskill views Hasani's veil-of-ignorance setup as stronger for utilitarian conclusions than Rawls' tweak.