Longtermism is very intuitive.

A LessWrong essay defends longtermism—the ethical view that prioritizes the welfare of vast potential future generations. The post tackles four common objections. On temporal discounting, the author argues that future suffering deserves equal moral weight to present suffering. On claims that longtermism justifies current atrocities, the rebuttal is that it actually supports helping the global South, since development there creates trillions of flourishing future lives. On accusations of racism, the essay argues that utilitarian logic demands prioritizing aid to the poorest, not the wealthy. On eugenics concerns, the piece acknowledges that gene-editing could widen inequality but suggests genetic enhancement could broadly benefit future humanity. The core claim is that longtermism simply applies utilitarian principles consistently across time.

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