X-Message-Number: 19514 Date: Mon, 15 Jul 2002 18:33:33 -0700 (PDT) From: Scott Badger <> Subject: Transterrestrial Musings Here's an excellent post by Rand Simberg that one could share with skeptics if desired. http://www.interglobal.org/weblog/archives/001366.html I found this site listed as a link on the Alan Boyle Cosmic Log section of MSNBC (july 12). http://msnbc.com/news/750150.asp?0dm=C1ALT And here's another post that has an interesting perspective on the resistant to cryonics. Posted by Ken Barnes at July 14, 2002 05:37 AM Cryonics really disturbs people on a level that is so deep that it is hard to reveal. It is easy to indulge in our "yuck factor" explanations of why we are uncomfortable: it's not natural, it's weird, only crazy rich people sign up for that. I think that the real reason that the majority cannot deal with cryonics, even the intelligent, scientifically oriented majority, is that it is an out, a chance at immortality having nothing to do with greatness, an easy answer to fear of death. We are jealous that some people will live forever because they were frozen, and that they only had to have money to achieve it. It goes against the deeply-ingrained puritan work ethic and morality that is below the surface of even the most objective American. On level as deep and subconscious as speaking English, we believe in the eventuality of death. Even those of us with no religious affiliation were raised in a society permeated with Judeo-Christian views of good and evil, and that immortality is reserved for God and his Son, and maybe some other really, really important people, but that the desire for eternal life in the ordinary person is sinful and misguided; the only way to have eternal life is to die on earth. We hate seeing someone get something for nothing, something we don't think they deserve--we were bathed in that belief as babies and fed full on it as children. As adults we are bound by our work ethic--getting something for nothing is wrong, we are working, doing as we should, so should they--and cannot feel comfortable with an easy way out of death. I would love to hide behind the scientific shortfalls of cryonics are the reason is bothers me, but in honesty I know it is that good old puritan founding father in my subconscious preaching that immortality should not be so easy, that there will be catch, and that even if he lives again he will be damned to all eternity, and that it isn't right because we've never done it before. My southern upbringing (though very liberal) is screaming "It's wrong not to die! Haven't you read your Bible?" I know that few people take the time or have the inclination to delve into the depths of their minds and uncover their hidden motivations, but my investigation has made it possible to look at cryogenics objectively, and see it as interesting and thought provoking rather than scary and unnatural. We just have to leave room in our lives for independent thought, and room to accept immortally frozen people can follow. ------------------------------ __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Yahoo! Autos - Get free new car price quotes http://autos.yahoo.com Rate This Message: http://www.cryonet.org/cgi-bin/rate.cgi?msg=19514