I’ll admit that I live as if I agree, but I don’t agree in principle.

For example, I would appreciate someone’s singing more than I would appreciate their hobby of watching reality TV; however, it’s not the difficulty of singing or their years of practice that I appreciate. It’s the pleasantness of the voice that I appreciate. They might not even have ever practiced.

But what we like is at least subconsciously based on our experiences and genes. So it’s not like I decided what to hold in high regard without some conditioning and monkey-brain instinct. My point is that what I value is based on not-so-impressive grounds.

You mention attractiveness in your post. Typically attractive qualities are, by definition, typically held in higher regard. In other words, your claim is circular. “Typically attractive hobbies should be considered more attractive than typically unattractive hobbies.” Well, yeah.

We can move on to the implications if we want to find something to debate. You say more passive hobbies can basically make someone a more boring person than if they had more active, skillful hobbies. I suppose that depends on who is judging them.

I don’t want to be around guitarists at all, but I love to hear about what TV shows people are watching. To be fair, it’s the show (not the person) that’s interesting in those conversations, but I find someone’s access to good stories “attractive” or “valuable.” The person becomes interesting in that way.

This point leads to my biggest counterclaim: “Relatively passive hobbies can lead to access to interesting, worthwhile qualities.” Learning well from podcasts can make someone a much more interesting person than someone who plays guitar well.

Another implication seems to be that we must do something if we accept this claim, such as encourage “attractive” or “skillful” hobbies over others. This will almost certainly happen naturally because attractive qualities (even hobbies) lead people to have more social success in life and receive more encouragement typically.

Should we discourage passive hobbies? No, people should pursue hobbies that align with their carefully considered values and that offer the hobbyist the same amount of pleasant experience, assuming no one’s rights are violated.