Scott Alexander addresses misconceptions about Moloch and human values, clarifying points from his previous post on the subject.
Longer summary
This post addresses several misconceptions about the concept of Moloch and human values, as discussed in a previous post. Scott clarifies that human values are not just about hedonism, explains how conquering the laws of physics is possible metaphorically, defends the potential truth value of widely-held beliefs, and acknowledges that while human values may have evolved through 'blind' processes, they can still be worth preserving. He uses analogies, philosophical arguments, and references to previous writings to counter these misconceptions, maintaining a somewhat technical but accessible tone throughout.
Shorter summary