Yoggism | Yogg Interest Theory
Yoggism, full name Yogg Interest Theory, is a philosophical framework built on the idea that the source of all normative value is the Fulfillment of Interests.
The core idea is this:
The Fulfillment of Interests, interests being rational preferences, wants, desires, goals; is the ultimate value and the source of Ethics.
This is posited as a more rational alternative to Kantian Ethics, Utilitarianism, the
Non-Aggression Principle, and more broadly, Voluntarism.
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What is Yoggism?
Yogg Interest Theory, is the idea that the Fulfillment of Interests, with priority to Inherent, Rational Interests, and the defense against Irrational, Inherently Frustrating Interests, is the most universal, utmost-rational principle there is.
It is a way of viewing Ethics and Law from a mixed Deontological and Consequentialist viewpoint.
It is also the apparent logical consequence of Justification Ethics, the idea that your engagement in an interaction with other sentient beings ought to be rationally justifiable to those beings, which therefore requires the normative value of Interests for the justification to follow.
Absolute Interest Conclusion
It is utmost rational to uphold the fulfillment of existent interests of all sentient beings, across all possible reference frames; with priority to existent, rational, Inherent Interests.
This conclusion is justified by rational justification itself via Justification Ethics, Normative Will, as well as the idea that the Utmost Rational Outcome for any specific set of sentient beings to approach is the outcome that best upholds the value of their Interests, where 'Interests' are rational preferences, wants, desires, goals.
It is also justified by an idea called Value Reductionism, wherein any value you have ultimately can be reduced to Interests and thus a value of Interests.
Therefore, actions that are against the normative value of Interests are self-contradictory.
Details of the Theory - Info Posters
Below is a slideshow containing Info Posters that explain overviews of different parts of the philosophy.
These can be useful for ease-of-access of the key points of what Inherent Interests are, and Justification Ethics, among other information.
Step-by-Step Guide
Oughts from Logic
[see full text]
Absolute Interest Conclusion
[see overview]
[see full text]
Anti-Abuse Principle
[see overview]
[see full text]
Justification Ethics
[see overview]
[see full text]
Yoggism as a Procedural Norm
[see full text]
Law from Reason
[see full text]
Normative Will
[see overview]
[see full text]
Yogg Virtue Theory
[see overview]
[see full text]
Interest Property Theory
[see full text]
Markets and Interest Alignment
[see full text]
Rationally, you ought to utmost-Rationally Fulfill your own Interests, as all beings are acting in accordance with their interests and thus rationally must act utmost-rationally towards their ends.
Thus, rational existent interests must have prioritization to the self.
The utmost-rational outcome that all sentient beings should align with is that which upholds the Fulfillment of Interests of all sentient beings, in all reference frames; with priority to Inherent, Rational Interests.
Thus, from the AIC, actions that constitute interference with another's non-abusive fulfillment of their own rational interests, are illegitimate.
Actions that result in the frustration of interests, due to misalignment of interests between parties, are irrational, constitute "abuse", and are illegitimate. Abuse must be defended against.
The Fulfillment of Interests as a value is implied by Rational Justification. Rational Justification of anything beyond pure rationalism requires appealing to the normative value of Interests, so any interaction that violates the value of Interests is rationally unjustifiable.
As interactions ought to be rationally justifiable, that justification must be based in Interests, if an interaction cannot be justified on rationalism alone.
Normative Rationalism is presupposed by deductive arguments and engagement in argumentation, as they rely upon it to have normative weight.
Non-abuse is required as a procedural norm of argumentation and is required by rational interactions, not just due to rational justification, but because enforcement of interest misalignment itself invalidates rational argumentation and the ability to seek truth.
Justification Ethics grants the value of Interests based on rational interactions. This grants interests as a value, as well as self-defense of rational interests, but not clearance to do evil for "the greater good". Instead, defense of the pillars that uphold Interests themselves can justify ideas reflecting Threshold Deontology and how a breakdown of rational deliberation should be avoided at all costs.
Giving to the poor, self-defense, and frustrating to prevent existential disaster, are all different. Good, Right, and merely Justifiable.
Only sentient beings have interests relevant to Justification Ethics and Yoggism, as these beings can be described in terms of the rationality of their behavior relative to different standards. A water bottle cannot behave irrationally, yet sentient beings can.
Normative Will is thus the capacity for normative evaluation of behaviors relative to standards beyond the mere laws of physics, including rationality, ethics, and personal preferences.
Every sentient being possesses some degree of this Normative Will. This also functions as a measure of how strongly Justification Ethics may apply to a given sentient being.
The value of well-rounded Consent can be derived via Justification Ethics. This virtue-wise can be framed as a Respect for Interests broadly.
Through this value, is inaction always justified? A framing of Virtue Ethics in terms of the Respect for Interests solves this problem, regardless of Justification Ethics granting explicit obligations, there is a basis for good character.
This grants the Yogg virtue Principle:
You ought to act in a way consistent with the virtues that curate respect for interests.
Self-Ownership can be justified under Yoggism based on Consent, where abusive conduct is framed as a violation of consent, in a way that contradicts the Absolutist View of Ownership; due to it contradicting interests.
You thus own your Interests, and Preferences, via the normative value of Interests, and also your Body and Mind as they are the primary conduit of your interests.
Inherent Frustration is condemnable in local spaces; to be censored for honest criticism or fired for unfair reasons is inherent frustration even if done in the larger purview of property rights rather than direct use of force, as abusive use of property based on Interest Property Theory is not ethically justifiable.
Due to the tendency for monopolization and more broadly centralization of firms in an unregulated market economy, caused by varying barriers to entry, inconsistency of perfect competition, and the self-reinforcing nature of market share growth, unregulated market economies naturally lead to abusive outcomes.
Anti-Abuse Principle
Actions that constitute interference with another's non-abusive fulfillment of their own rational and non-contradictory interests, are illegitimate.
Actions that result in the frustration of interests, through overall frustration by misalignment of interests between parties, or due to conduct that is inherently interest-frustrating, are irrational and self-contradictory, constitute ‘abuse’, and are thus illegitimate.
Actions that prevent abuse, or inhibit otherwise interest-frustrating conduct; including conduct that is a product of irrational interest misalignment between parties, and conduct that is inherently irrationally frustrating; are legitimate as they constitute resistance to abuse.
This principle can be stated in essence in a simple sentence:
"Do what you want, unless it stops others from doing what they want, unless what they want is irrational and inherently harmful to other's interests; in which case defend rational interests."
Justification Ethics
Justification Ethics is a way of proving Yoggism via the claim that the normative value of Interests is implied by rational justification, because any argument that is a rational justification requires an appeal to the interests of whomever you are interacting with.
The only exception is arguments that prove things purely rationally, as rationalism is presupposed by the argument itself. Any other kind of argument must appeal to Interests.
Thus, interactions ought to be rationally justifiable to others involved in the interaction, and that rational justification requires an appeal to the normative value of Interests.
This logic is derived from the idea that the normative value of Interests is implicitly recognized as true through the acceptance of any Persuasive Argument.
A Persuasive Argument is any argument that attempts to deduce a claim in the form:
"You ought to believe/accept X"
Deriving Interest Fulfillment
Persuasive Arguments and thus Rational Justification must appeal to Interests
Premises of a persuasive argument must be justifiable to the person the ought claim is made to, otherwise the claim could not follow.
Rational Justification functions as a persuasive argument, an argument that proves a claim in the form "you ought to accept X" to some opponent. Any argument like this, any persuasive argument at all, must appeal to the interests of the opponent for the opponent to accept the premises; the only exception being arguments that prove claims solely based on rationalism itself.
For if the opponent does not accept the premises, the argument will not follow.
For example, trying to argue that "you ought to buy a washing machine" must appeal to the interests of the opponent.
Rational Justification must appeal to the Normative Value of Interests
Normative claims cannot be derived purely through non-normative premises. If a claim is truely normative, that normativity has to come from premises that are justifiable.
Persuasive Arguments, and thus Rational Justification, is only meaningful if it proves a normative claim "you ought to accept X". The normativity of the claim must be derived from the premises of the argument, and those premises must appeal to the interests of the opponent.
Therefore, as a premise of any act of rational justification, the normative value of the opponent's interests must be appealed to.
Interactions should be Rationally Justifiable
If you act in a way where your behavior is rationally unjustifiable, you are being irrational. Any semblance of reason would thus discredit such behavior.
If you interact with someone, you should be able to rationally justify your interaction, in a way where those involved in the interaction should be rationally required to accept it.
This means you should be able to justify that the claim “You rationally ought to accept my way of interacting is reasonable” is true for the person you are interacting with; you should be able to argue you are acting reasonably.
To contradict the value of Interests is to contradict Rational Justification
Interactions that contradict the normative value of interests, fail to be rationally justifiable to those engaged in the interaction.
This is a 'persuasive argument', meaning an argument that attempts to derive a claim in the form "You ought to accept X". Any argument in this form, must appeal to the interests of any debate opponent for the conclusion to have valid normative weight.
To engage in an interaction that is inconsistent with the normative value of interest, is to engage in an interaction that cannot be rationally justified to anyone.
Yogg Virtue Theory
Yogg Virtue Theory is the idea that the definition of a Good Character or Good Virtue is founded on the Respect for Interests, and behaviors that curate this respect,
are good.
This grants the Yogg Virtue Principle:
You ought to act in a way consistent with the virtues that curate respect for interests, including Mutual Respect, Justice, Truth, and Recognition of others as Self-Sovereign.
You ought to not act against Consent, or enforce Interest Misalignment for your own gain through Unfairness, Irrationality, Explotativeness, or Abuse.
You ought to form a character that adheres to the responsibility of upholding these character traits, against Negligence towards others, and Abuse of others.
Common virtues such as Justice, Self-Sovereignty, and Generosity, are simply emergent properties of the Respect for Interests.
The idea of Virtue is a great way of explaining how inaction can be morally wrong. Specifically if someone does not act to save someone and lets someone come to harm, the justification of calling that a moral wrong, is difficult under Justification Ethics,
Justification Ethics is contingent on the normative obligation to rationally justify methods of interaction. If there is no interaction occurring, it's not obvious how there could be an obligation to rationally justify inaction, or even how such justification could happen, and to whom.
Praxeological Asymmetry could also be used to argue for inaction not needing justification, based on the epistemic logic of there being a default state of falsity for any positive claim, thus disbelief in something can be excused simply by the lack of evidence, though a true lack of evidence in all directions implies neutrality, violating this asymmetry.
Virtue Ethics, specifically built around the Respect for Interests, solves these problems. Virtue Ethics is a philosophical approach emphasizing character and virtue, rather than adherence towards a principle or goal.
Positive traits, Virtues, and negative traits, Vices, are the attributes that help curate morally positive and morally negative behavior, respectively.
The Anti-Abuse Principle can then be used as an easy way to justify how:
1. Behaviors functioning off of misaligned interests can result in frustration for one side of a deal, which is dangerous, and
2. Respect of Interests in a way similar to Immanuel Kant's "Treat People as an End, never as a Mere Means" is a good way of describing how to prevent such abuse from occurring.
These are the justification for Yogg Virtue Theory and it's utility.
Normative Will
A water bottle cannot behave irrationally, the distinction of rational behavior and irrational behavior does not apply to it. A water bottle's behavior can only be measured relative to the laws of physics themselves.
Sentient beings can act rationally and irrationally though, relative to their interests and relative to the value of truth.
This grants a way of describing "free will" that is coherent and non-mystical.
The Normative Will of sentient beings is the difference in volition and ability to resist instinct, the ability to act rationally or irrationally relative to rational standards and relative to one's own interests, and the ability to contradict naturally selected preferences.
Definition:
Normative Will is therefore the capacity for normative evaluation of behaviors relative to standards beyond the mere laws of physics; including rationality, ethics, and personal preferences.
Implications
How it connects to Justification Ethics
Justification Ethics is the idea that rational justification presupposes an appeal to the Normative Value of Interests themselves.
If you interact with a water bottle, you need not justify your actions to the water bottle, because rationally justifying a claim of "This water bottle ought to accept X idea" makes no sense. The water bottle is not a rational actor at any level.
For sentient beings this isn't true. Consider the interaction of "I will steal this child's candy". How can you rationally justify such an interaction? The child would object, and the child's cognition should be complex enough to be able to judge the action on rational grounds, thus the objection is of rational weight.
Thus, rational justification requires you to be able to prove "The child ought rationally to accept my interaction as non-contradictory". This is impossible, because you cannot:
1. Prove it's positively rational to steal candy based on rationalism alone, with no explicit or implicit appeal to normative value.
2. Prove it's legitimate to steal candy relative to the normative value of Interests, as the action is inherently frustrating and without reason.
Therefore, stealing candy from a child is rationally unjustifiable.
Therefore, Normative Will is the way to measure how strictly Justification Ethics applies.
Animal Rights through Justification
Justification Ethics, which implies the Normative Value of Interests, can apply to any sentient being where their cognition is complex enough to judge a given action on rational grounds, relative to the standards or complexity of the action and it's affects.
In the "stealing candy from a child" example, the child's cognition is complex enough to be able to object to the behavior in a way that makes sense.
Similar logic applies to animals, you can simply replace "child" with "monkey/dog/bird/earthworm" and it's fine. Since preference is present in all sentient beings, those beings can object to behavior based on their preferences. Those beings do have the ability to act rationally and irrationally relative to their interests, and relative to how they should act relative to the truth, making it possible to define "rational oughts" that apply to them.
If you try to kill a dog for no reason other than you want to, it is impossible to make an argument such that "The dog ought rationally to accept your interaction as non-contradictory". This is impossible, because you cannot:
1. Prove it's positively rational to steal candy based on rationalism alone, with no explicit or implicit appeal to normative value.
2. Prove it's legitimate to steal candy relative to the normative value of Interests, as the action is inherently frustrating and without reason.
Since the dog has the ability to judge your behavior based on their own preferences, and any attempt to justify your behavior has to appeal to their preferences, your actions are unjustifiable.
Absolute Interest Conclusion Proven
It has thus been shown that Normative Will is the appropriate measure on how strictly Justification Ethics applies.
Killing a dog is unjustifiable because the dog has the ability to rationally object to it, same with killing a monkey, or a child, or a cow, or a human.
The logical consequence of this is that any entity that is sentient with Interests, has Justification Ethics apply to it to the rational extent.
Any unnecessary inherent frustration of their interests is thus illegitimate as it cannot be justified without appealing either to Interest-free Rationalism, which doesn't work, or appealing to the Normative Value of Interests by trying to appeal to their own standards, which is contradictory.
Therefore, the Fulfillment of Interests of all sentient beings, in all reference frames; with priority to Inherent, Rational Interests, is sustained.