re: Sam Harris responds to Biden Address

quote:

---

I never suggested he was, I just don’t think he’s in rarified air. He’s not particularly intellectually curious or capable of introspection like Peterson, he’s certainly not a visionary like Jobs or Musk. He’s well above average but I could go to any of several top ten universities and pluck his equal or better out of grad school. He’s on the far right side of the bell curve, no question, but he’s not in the section that his standing would suggest. He’s celebrity-smart, like Black Science Man.

---

well said. I can find a subset of my colleagues with an active interest in philosophy that are just capable as Harris in engaging in a discourse trying to understand the world around us and are more well read on the literature to foster an even deeper conversation. Which I guess goes back to my point, I find it odd that this dude is propped up on a pedestal, and do not see why I or anyone else should care about his insights more than one any of those aforementioned colleagues.

Is being able to keep your cool in the face of opposition and talking in a calm voice really such a rare trait that this implies an a priori authority behind your opinions? I don’t think so even if it is a good trait to have, and when you get past his decorum and into the meat of his ideas I just don’t see what is so interesting there.