Okay, so then I fund pro-life groups to protect the lives/happiness of fetuses. And the EA activist down the street funds pro-choice groups to protect the lives/happiness of mothers. And we keep escalating such donations while having little net effect.
IMHO EA has more than a hint of authoritarian (or at least anti-democratic) tendencies. What gives some rich guy the right to decide what would maximize happiness for others? Why not just leave that money with the people who are best positioned to make those decisions for themselves my minimizing wealth inequality instead?
Great idea! Unsurprisingly, pro-choice and pro-life groups are not in the EA top recommended charities. GiveDirectly, which leaves money with the people who are best positioned to make decisions for themselves, is. There might be a lot of authoritarian EAs on forums promoting AI safety, but please don't judge the whole group by a vocal minority.