X-Message-Number: 3509
Date:  Sun, 18 Dec 94 21:28:05 
From: Bridge Steve <>
Subject: CRYONICS Ben Best's rumor


To CryoNet
>From Steve Bridge, President
Alcor Life Extension Foundation
December 18, 1994

In reply to:    Message: #3500 - The Las Vegas A4M Conference
                From:  (Ben Best)
                Date: Sun, 18 Dec 1994 00:32:00 -0500

     Thanks to Ben for his discussion of the A4M Conference.  The Alcor 
staff and volunteers who attended were equally impressed with the 
conference.  The enthusiasm generated was the highest I have ever seen at 
a conference, and I think this bodes well for the future of anti-aging 
research and life extension.  Make no mistake, most of the people there 
were not content with squaring the curve and being healthier until they 
die at 120.  These were people who want MORE LIFE.

     About 30 cryonicists were in attendance (by my count) and it was 
interesting to watch people's eyes light up or become confused as they met
their first cryonicist.  It was surprising how many people there had not 
heard of cryonics or knew next to nothing about it.   I think we made some 
headway, though.

     We will be publishing an extensive account of the conference in the 
next issue of CRYONICS Magazine.

     I do need to comment on a rumor Ben threw in:

>   On the first night Brenda posted signs and handed-out personal
>invitations to participants leaving the proceedings. On the second
>day, Brenda was prevented from distributing invitations to participants
>leaving the proceedings -- and it was rumored that this was due to
>complaints by Alcor people. 

     I doubt that this rumor was true.  I am aware of no such complaints.  
Our only conversations on the subject were along the line of "Brenda had a 
good idea."  Certainly no staff member or Board member from Alcor 
complained.  On what grounds could we complain?  Parties are unfair?  
Besides, we didn't have any influence with the Conference organizers.  Why 
should they care if there is cryonics competition going on?

     The only guess I might hazard is that some other exhibitor (who had 
to pay a large fee to have a booth) thought that CryoCare was somehow 
getting a commercial advantage without paying for a booth.  That is a 
complete guess, based on no knowledge at all, except for the price of a 
booth and the fact that some exhibitors were unhappy because the exhibit 
area was very poorly marked and publicized.

>The CryoCare party was well-attended on the
>first night and sparsely-attended on the subsequent two nights. I don't
>know why Alcor people didn't have a hospitality suite.

     Alcor didn't have a hospitality suite because there is only a certain 
amount of money and energy reasonable to spend on a conference, especially 
in situation like this where we could not tell in advance how large and 
interesting the crowd would be.  We were already spending a lot of money 
on booth, displays, literature, travel, and rooms.  And running the 
exhibit plus attending sessions was a long day's work already.  So we got 
the attention during the day and CryoCare got the attention at night.  
That's fine.  Twice as many chances to turn people into cryonicists.

Steve Bridge

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