“…quantification enables large-scale comparison, and such comparison is needed in order to make high-stakes tradeoffs in an informed way. Tradeoffs, in turn, are essential to practical rationality. We can’t avoid them: different values are in conflict, and can’t all be jointly satisfied. We have to choose, or “trade off”, between them. The only question is how. We can do so openly and honestly, by seriously trying to assess their comparative value or importance. Or we can do so dishonestly, with our heads in the sand, pretending that one of the values doesn’t have to be counted at all.

Now, when people complain that EA quantifies things (like cross-species suffering) that allegedly “can’t be precisely quantified,” what they’re effectively doing is refusing to consider that thing at all. Because the realistic alternative to EA-style quantitative analysis is vibes-based analysis: just blindly going with what’s emotionally appealing at a gut level. And many things that are difficult to precisely quantify (like the suffering of non-cute animals) lack emotional appeal.”

Richard Y Chappell makes this point in relation to shrimp welfare, but it works equally well regarding our urge to help homeless people on the street, as I wrote a few weeks ago: exasperatedalien.substa…