Ryan,
You said:
“Now the question is whether your method is realistically rather than just theoretically possible. To what extent can imperfectly rational, self-interested beings who are prone to cognitive bias actually determine/agree upon what rationality dictates in any given situation?”
They won’t always be able to, but I do think we get closer. there are two specific ways we can get closer to this ideal, both of which have been improving over time which means this can also account for what we call moral progress (which is often considered a knock against secular theories).
The first way is to gain more accurate information. There is no denying this has been happening and should continue. We know now that factual errors were committed when it was claimed that women or dark skinned people were inferior to white males. We know that bad fortune are not due to the will of gods, etc. The more accurate our information, the closer we can come to what the agent would choose.
The second way is to just be more rational. So, we do have biases, but there are also certainly many cases where people recognize them and do things to lessen their effect. This is just one example among many, but hopefully it’s clear that we can improve in this way, which means we are moving closer toward our ideal.
The ideal will never be reached, but moral progress (which is analogous in my model to moving closer to the ideal) can be made.
You also said:
“I thought of another issue to possibly trouble you, since I like to make you work: what is rational for the individual may not be rational for the group. Would you suggest that perfect rationality dictates that every individual make the choice that, when taken collectively, is best for the group, even when that choice on its own might be bad for the individual?”
I’m honestly not sure what to say about groups. The written piece above was my first time trying to put a defense of this into writing, so I haven’t really thought through all the details yet and I’m still trying to consider various criticisms. I think it’s a valid question; I just don’t know the answer without taking some time to really sit down and consider it.
