1 definition by dptimessmallconstant
Moloch is the personification of terrible systems or situations in society that everyone hates but don't get fixed.
Originally the name of a Canaanite god which received child sacrifices, Allen Ginsberg used Moloch to symbolize the state of industrial civilization in his poem "Howl".
The blogger Scott Alexander popularized the term as it is commonly used by many rationalists, although it was already in occasional use by historians and economics to describe systemic issues within or caused by their respective fields.
The term is often used by particularly condescending rationalists to talk down to public servants, academics, and occasionally founders of startups who are trying their best to change the world for the better but likely have no real power to do so.
Originally the name of a Canaanite god which received child sacrifices, Allen Ginsberg used Moloch to symbolize the state of industrial civilization in his poem "Howl".
The blogger Scott Alexander popularized the term as it is commonly used by many rationalists, although it was already in occasional use by historians and economics to describe systemic issues within or caused by their respective fields.
The term is often used by particularly condescending rationalists to talk down to public servants, academics, and occasionally founders of startups who are trying their best to change the world for the better but likely have no real power to do so.
Very often with capitalism, business practices are set by Moloch: No one person has any influence over the matter.
Oh, you're in welfare policy research? I thought Moloch had already eaten all the value there.
Oh, you're in welfare policy research? I thought Moloch had already eaten all the value there.
by dptimessmallconstant April 13, 2019