X-Message-Number: 4704
Date: Wed, 2 Aug 1995 11:15:32 -0400 (EDT)
From: Charles Platt <>
Subject: Good Faith

David Stodolski asks, "Have patients ever been lost as a result of people 
acting in good faith?"

Well, yes, I think this is the *main* way that patients have been lost.
I've read a lot of cryonics history but have not yet come across a truly
malevolent character. I have certainly come across people who (variously)
may have put image ahead of substance, bent the rules, tried to cover up
facts, and made bad decisions, but I don't think they were out to cheat 
anyone or hurt anyone.

The loss of patients at Chatsworth (the #1 embarrassment in cryo history)
can be traced directly back to the "noble deed" of accepting cases where
there was little or no funding (hoping that donations would cover the
costs of long-term storage) AND the practice of accepting patients whose
costs were paid by relatives (who lost interest a couple years later). In
retrospect we can see that these were bad decisions, but at the time they
seem to have been made out of a combination of hubris, desire to seem
noble and attract new members, and a genuine interest in preserving life.
No bad faith there, at least not by my understanding of the term. 

I don't think we have to worry very much about outright con men in
cryonics; there isn't enough money to keep them here for long. The real
danger would be the messiah personality who honestly believes he's acting
in everyone's best interests. 

--Charles Platt


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