Jeremy Stangroom

Not only does he not challenge the status quo, he celebrates it (Better Angels). Citing metrics of improvement is fine but it doesn't erase growing inequality, he benefits. Doesn't make him a monster, just your average shitheel. People naturally want to maintain their advantages.

I guess many of us are shitheels from that perspective -- we have and enjoy fine things (good food, cars, nice toys, not to mention education, housing, and sanitation) that many around the world lack.

I'm guilty. But I think we need to try to constantly remind ourselves of implicit bias, if we only interact with those who share those advantages we are blind to it.

. Living in a working-class district of a Greek city I get reminders of this everyday. Do I do enough about it? No. Given my awareness level, that probably makes me a much greater shitheel than Pinker.

Have you read Unger's Living High and Letting Die? (It's good on this stuff.)

No -- I'll get a copy. Thanks for the tip.

This is my online version of perhaps its central thought experiment: http://www.philosophyexperiments.com/sedan/Default.aspx …

Really interesting and effectively presented. I know it's not the point, but I wonder what correlation there is between what we think we should do in this or that case and what we actually would do.