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Oct 13, 2021
acx

Highlights From The Comments On Kids And Climate Change

39 min • 5,384 words • 561 comments • 91 likes • podcast (37 min)
Scott responds to various reader comments on his article about having children despite climate change, addressing critiques and expanding on several points. Longer summary
This post highlights and responds to various comments on Scott's previous article about having children despite climate change concerns. It covers topics such as the sincerity of climate concerns, political implications, carbon emissions by location, the severity of climate change impacts, and arguments for and against having children in the current climate context. Scott engages with these comments, offering additional insights, corrections, and reflections on the original arguments. Shorter summary
Jun 21, 2017
ssc

Against Murderism

46 min • 6,392 words
Scott Alexander critiques the concept of 'racism' as an oversimplified explanation for complex issues, arguing for a more nuanced approach to understanding and addressing societal problems. Longer summary
Scott Alexander critiques the concept of 'racism' as a catch-all term that conflates different motives and beliefs, leading to ineffective discourse and polarization. He argues that treating racism as a simple explanation for complex issues prevents understanding root causes and finding effective solutions. The post uses an analogy of 'murderism' to illustrate how this approach is flawed, and suggests that breaking down racist actions into non-racist motives can lead to better outcomes. Scott emphasizes the importance of maintaining liberal values and open dialogue to prevent societal breakdown. Shorter summary
May 30, 2013
ssc

Fetal Attraction: Abortion and the Principle of Charity

36 min • 4,918 words • 164 comments
Scott Alexander argues that claims about pro-lifers secretly wanting to oppress women are uncharitable and likely false, and that we should engage with actual philosophical disagreements on abortion. Longer summary
Scott Alexander critiques an article arguing that pro-lifers don't actually care about fetuses but only want to coerce women. He argues this claim is uncharitable and likely false for several reasons: 1) It misunderstands the non-consequentialist ethics of many pro-lifers, 2) There's no evidence of widespread secret motivations, 3) It's unclear what it would even mean to 'not really believe' something, 4) It commits the genetic fallacy. Scott argues we should engage with the actual philosophical disagreements rather than impugning motives, and that the principle of charity is important when discussing contentious issues like abortion. Shorter summary