site banner
PaperclipPerfector  6mo ago (text post)   4110 thread views

Small-Scale Question Sunday for November 5, 2023

Do you have a dumb question that you're kind of embarrassed to ask in the main thread? Is there something you're just not sure about?

This is your opportunity to ask questions. No question too simple or too silly.

Culture war topics are accepted, and proposals for a better intro post are appreciated.

3
Top Bottom New Old Comments
Jump in the discussion.

No email address required.

Really, I can't convince myself any good reason to not "drive like an asshole."

You'll get there if you keep thinking. Apart from the danger to other people's lives (and also your own life and the lives of your passengers when your unstoppable force meets its immovable object), the most compelling reason to not be an asshole (on the road at high speeds in a 2 ton metallic box, in line at Lowe's, at the table at Red Lobster, or, yes, online): is that it's contagious. Your zooming in front of a frazzled mother shakes her up, she gets so rattled she snaps at her daughter, who is then a little bitch to her brother, who then storms out and throws a rock at a window. It's a cycle of destruction and human misery that is a microcosm of hell on earth. Sure, you get wherever faster and mildly more smug, but you've fucked over your fellow men and women to do so. If explaining why that is not ideal is necessary, it is probably also pointless.

That said, I understand you may have been going for hyperbole.

Here's the thing.

What you said is just about the worst-case scenario of driving like an asshole. And on net that is still probably still morally less worse than.. Using your phone while out on a dinner with friends. The cost is far too diffuse.

Although I am a big fan of thinking about and being mindful of nth order effects, nth order morality not so much. You can just about create a case for not doing anything ever because somewhere down the chain of events, someone gets harmed a non 0 amount.

And driving "like and asshole" isn't much more risky than not driving like an asshole. Certainly orders of magnitude less than um... texting and driving. Speed kills, not cutting in line at 20 mph.

What you said is just about the worst-case scenario of driving like an asshole

I see you've never driven on I-880.

What you said is just about the worst-case scenario of driving like an asshole.

No, it's not, not even close. The worst-case scenarios are low-probability events like cutting off the wrong guy and getting shot in the face or overestimating your own competence, killing someone, and being charged with negligent homicide.

Hmm. Do you get pissed off when someone cuts you off (and succeeds...Presumably with your view you're not going gently into that good shoulder)?

Mind you if we're talking about reasonably aggressive driving we may be of the same mind--too cautious drivers are also a hazard, which is one reason I enjoy driving the Osaka Loop (especially at night, like being in a sci fi film) and my wife hates it. But that's minus the assholery and maliciousness that "driving like an asshole" suggests to me. Maybe I need examples.

What is this place?

This website is a place for people who want to move past shady thinking and test their ideas in a court of people who don't all share the same biases. Our goal is to optimize for light, not heat; this is a group effort, and all commentators are asked to do their part.

The weekly Culture War threads host the most controversial topics and are the most visible aspect of The Motte. However, many other topics are appropriate here. We encourage people to post anything related to science, politics, or philosophy; if in doubt, post!

Check out The Vault for an archive of old quality posts. You are encouraged to crosspost these elsewhere.


Why are you called The Motte?

A motte is a stone keep on a raised earthwork common in early medieval fortifications. More pertinently, it's an element in a rhetorical move called a "Motte-and-Bailey", originally identified by philosopher Nicholas Shackel. It describes the tendency in discourse for people to move from a controversial but high value claim to a defensible but less exciting one upon any resistance to the former. He likens this to the medieval fortification, where a desirable land (the bailey) is abandoned when in danger for the more easily defended motte. In Shackel's words, "The Motte represents the defensible but undesired propositions to which one retreats when hard pressed."

On The Motte, always attempt to remain inside your defensible territory, even if you are not being pressed.


New post guidelines

If you're posting something that isn't related to the culture war, we encourage you to post a thread for it. A submission statement is highly appreciated, but isn't necessary for text posts or links to largely-text posts such as blogs or news articles; if we're unsure of the value of your post, we might remove it until you add a submission statement. A submission statement is required for non-text sources (videos, podcasts, images).

Culture war posts go in the culture war thread; all links must either include a submission statement or significant commentary. Bare links without those will be removed.

If in doubt, please post it!


Rules


Recommended Posts And Communities

Recommended Realtime Chats