17 – The Feels

Feelings – should we have them? The Conspiracy decides! This American Life episode about Testosterone Julia Galef’s presentation on The Straw Vulcan. Also – a text summary of same Less Wrong article: “Feeling Rational” Steven Universe is The Best! Sam Harris speaks with Paul Bloom against empathy Less Wrong article: “Scope Insensitivity” “One death is a Tragedy, a million deaths is a Statistic” – Eneasz attributed this to Joseph Stalin, but modern research casts this into doubt. It was first attributed to him by a third-party in 1947, but it’s possible/probable he never actually said those words. Nonviolent Communication Kaj Sotala on Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Less Wrong article by FiddleMath: “Handling Emotional Appeals“, wherein they ask (among other things) – Can you postpone being moved by an emotional appeal until after making a calm decision about it? Can you somehow otherwise filter for emotional appeals that are highly likely to have positive effects? The Christian orphanage that wouldn’t accept money from atheists. Don’t take money from The Templeton Foundation Eneasz’s brief recap of The Sad/Rabid Puppies vs Worldcon. Also – Salaris’s briefer recap of the same issue received twice as many upvotes, so maybe their’s is better. Eliezer Yudkowsky’s novella “Three Worlds Collide” (also available in audio form) Small Pox: 500 Million, But Not a Single One More It was Andrew Jackson who reportedly said “John Marshall has made his decision; now let him enforce it!” Here’s a fascinating More Perfect podcast episode about the story behind that quote (as well as the US Supreme Court’s ascent to power) Andrew Jackson beat up his would-be assassin with a cane at 67 years old.