X-Message-Number: 22586 From: "John de Rivaz" <> Subject: funeral directors Date: Sat, 27 Sep 2003 11:07:52 +0100 I think it is in error to suggest that funeral directors have any interest in destroying the cryonics movement. The motivations of any profession are not planned by a single individual or individuals in meetings private or public. The motivations of professions evolve in just the same way the apparent motivations of species as a whole. The motivations of all species is survival of the species by survival of the fittest individuals, so as to improve the species. The motivations of all professions is to ensure the survival of the profession by maximising its power base and the income of the profession as a whole (ie the sum of its individual practitioners' incomes). [for further expansion of this, please see Dawkins - the Selfish Gene] Considering now the funeral directors as a profession -- their power base and their incomes are set for substantial increase if the practise of cryonics comes widespread. Lawyers and regulators also stand to gain more income if they don't stamp out cryonics, but milk it for fees. Individuals *within* any profession are quite different. They may stand to gain publicity or income by attacking anything, but they are only individuals, not the whole profession. To take an extreme example, if an individual seeks notoriety, good or bad, then becoming a serial killer is one way to get it. Take a less extreme example: Someone trying to stamp out any beneficial medical procedure, or inflict suffering in the name of medicine, gets known. Who hasn't heard of Dr Mengele? But who does know the names of the no doubt many physicians who practise medicine tirelessly in general practise and are selfless idealists on behalf of their patients? -- Sincerely, John de Rivaz: http://John.deRivaz.com for websites including Cryonics Europe, Longevity Report, The Venturists, Porthtowan, Alec Harley Reeves - inventor, Arthur Bowker - potter, de Rivaz genealogy, Nomad .. and more Rate This Message: http://www.cryonet.org/cgi-bin/rate.cgi?msg=22586