I took a class in college on critical reasoning that introduced me to the effective altruism community and Rationalists. I thought it was brilliant (it’s all about choice! Critical thought! Being logical and aware of your biases! Pro-human despite a holier-than-thou stance against sheeple!). I thought I was going to dedicate my career to AI ethics. COVID happened and I dropped all interest as my values radically shifted, but it’s bizarre to reflect on now. Between Zizians and Luigi Mangione, I had no idea what I was so close to.