sourcenode
· 1w
That depends upon one's time preference. Under a broad view self interest and the "greater good" are the same thing. However, the reason I keep those words in quotes is because they are impossible to ...
Interesting.
Impossible to define would mean that humans do not have any construct for understanding. Greater good, in this scenario is an effect/result. Quite a defined result. Greater, meaning more than n=1. Good, meaning positive impact. Greater good, meaning positive impact for more than 1. You claiming, "the reason I keep those words in quotes is because they are impossible to define", is your personal opinion or could represent an unwillingness to define the phrase to justify your original stance.
>therefore ripe for abuse by so called altruistic actors
Why is altruism looked at as a pejorative here? Altruism really just means taking an action without thinking of how you'd individually gain something from the action. Actions can be benign. Actions can be benevolent & lead to the individual gaining nothing. Actions can be benevolent AND also lead to the individual gaining something in the end. Taking this last scenario & using that end result as plausible deniability to shoehorn speculated motive is how society wants you to see altruism. Correlation is not causation. Not every interaction between humans needs to be transactional & zero sum
Appeal to the societal norms or authorities at your own peril.
I appreciate your discourse Source. Would love to talk in person about some of this some day...
