X-Message-Number: 26276
From: 
Subject: A joke in poor taste?
Date: Fri, 3 Jun 2005 10:47:22 GMT

   Ben Best wrote:
       
>          I challenge anyone questioning my veracity to
> come to CI and examine the cryostat in which Agnes is
> being stored. It is covered with post-it notes.

(Full posting at:    http://www.cryonet.org/cgi-bin/dsp.cgi?msg=26269  )

  Rudi Hoffman wrote:

> LOL!  Outstanding!  I believe you, Ben!  I hope they stick  long enough for
> "Agnes" to be revived.

   IGGY Dybal wrote: 

> Why not have fun on the one hand? And on the other hand, this should get us

> all thinking about the legacy we are leaving behind? Otherwise, life will be 
dull

  [snip]

> Ben, great story, joke or not... Boy, cryonics requires some balls and I
> know how that biologically it's tough for a woman to get those :o)

   Thomas Donaldson wrote:

> It would take a pretty warped imagination for any cryonicist to believe
> that Ben Best's story wasn't true. I conclude that this person wasn't
> a cryonicist, and am not at all surprised that noncryonicists
> sometimes access Cryonet

    Having written these spoofs, now I must be serious (hoping that people
will believe me) and admit to my prank. I thought it was a great joke, but
being lighthearted when holding a position of such responsibility is not easy.
This probably explains why so many politicians are humorless bores -- irony
can be deadly when people take you seriously.

   A number of intelligent people have not understood that my posting was

a joke, and I hope that they are excused for this and do not suffer 
embarrassment.
Jokes told in person are more effective because facial expression and tone of
voice can make a big difference. And hints can be given if the message isn't 
coming across. 


    It is also a deadly risk, because it has happened several times in the past
    that imposters have posted messages under the assumed names of notable

cryonicists for the purpose ruining their reputation and credibility. I must 
prepare

for this, and doing spoofs as I have just done will not make it easier for me to
defend myself.  


    So again, I apologize if I have made anyone feel foolish -- there are no 
    grounds

for such feeling. My humor is often more subtle than I realize, and all the more

so when it is in written form.  A position of responsibility is empowering, but 
it can
also be a prison. 
                                          -- Ben Best

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