9 replies to this topic

[thefirstimmortal]

The ultimate limit placed on us, either by a wise and benevolent Deity or by a mechanistic and uncaring nature, will someday fall. In times past, “old” has been almost a synonym for “decrepit,” and great age has led inevitably to death. Several decades or so, neither of these historical facts is likely to be true. If we are sufficiently attentive, the advancing years may conceivably bring us a trace of wisdom. They will not carry the infirmities that always have followed a scant few decades of life. Well into what would have been our retirement years, we will retain the health and vigor of people chronologically much younger. Death (without the intervention of cryonics) would still be decades off, and further research may well put it forward into the unguessable future.

[thefirstimmortal]

Immortality is the ultimate liberation.

[thefirstimmortal]

Death is on its way out. Mankind's dream of physical immortality, the ancient "impossible dream", is going to be realized most likely in this century.

Incredibly, there are those who object, even to the prospect of death's demise. Theologians, doctors, undertakers, ecologists, and a host of others, all believe they'd have a great deal to lose if people could live forever. Indeed they might. We must be ready to take them on, objection by objection, and show them up for the obstructionists they are.

[bacopa]

I agree Will I think we should challenge these notions meme by meme. And we can't stop to question why because that's when we've dug ourselves a hole. We have to fight with the notion that too many have already died if anything in fighting for our own lives we're also fighting for others dreams who have died far too soon.

It's important to look at life as all that there is and will ever be, when that meme is out than people will really start to see the light so to speak. People need to have a strong need for life and respect it to its highest degree. Life is their right and in the words of Bob Marley they should 'stand up for their right!'

Once people realize that life is the only rational choice and that there is no utility to death than we really have something. But until than we must keep on pushing people to realize that the preciousness in any one life is worth the net worth of all lives and that any death is a tragedy. The fact that there has been so many deaths is tragic enough for Christ Sakes there should not have even been so so many deaths. War is a blight worse than death in some ways.

Once people can wake up and simply say hey I don't have any pressure on me because time is not a factor, and I'm in no danger of having to die for my country than we have made progress. But for now there is so much negative utility in a deathist mentality that clouds, fogs our world that we have to start fighting harder to stop this blight on humanity.

Humanity can and will only prosper when death is obliterated, damn it I've said I'm for radical life extension now I'm proclaiming I'm an immortalist! I want to live forever and have nothing stop my life. We all deserve at shot at living forever and those who most want it will naturally value it.

Everyone should want to shoot for forever. I see a day when people simply will live life as if there were no tomorrow and dammit there will still be chance of death even than so forever is a rational response after all. I disagree with Leon Kass he should look at himself as a walking, breathing time bomb, than he'll see the utilitly in wanting to be immortal! [:o]

[cafinatedcowboy]

Sounds cool, but certain pleasures in life can only be experienced while risking your own life. Would you consider it obstructionist for someone to object to immortality simply on the basis that they gain more pleasure narrowly dodging their own demise than from anything else in life? Whether they like it or not, death is a concept that most of humanity has grown pretty acustomed to. A change as radical as the elimination of death as an inevitability is always going to be questioned by SOMEONE. Even in the twilight that proceeds the dawning of imortality there will be people who think it's not such a hot idea(irrational though it may seem). People like to do their own thing, instead of working AGAINST the people who would oppose immortality, would it not be easier to work AROUND them? Leave those who wish to stay mortal the way they are?

[kevin]

All good points cafinatedcowboy..

I don't think you will find many to argue that those who wish to remain 'mortal' should have the right to do so. What I object to very strenuously is when someone values the continuation of MY existence to be equally as unimportant as their own and actively attempts to engineer circumstances to prevent the opportunities for me extending my life and those I love from occuring.

I expect that there will always be those who get a charge out of risking their lives although high risk behavior is being tied to specific genes and it will be possible to temper that if they so wished in the future. I used to be a 'high risk' individual until I realized how fragile the human body really is.. It's not so much death that scared me but living the rest of my life in a broken body that changed my outlook on things.

Now I just simply don't want to die..

[cafinatedcowboy]

Very Pragmatic. I think people should be free to live (and possibly end) their lives as they see fit. I havn't really decided where I stand on immortality for myself (hypothetical or otherwise). Superhuman powers wouldn't bother me though...

[kevin]

For me immortality is just the natural outcome of living one day at a time in world where it still makes sense to do so. It's impossible for me to imagine a time when, being of sound mind and body, I wouldn't want another day or even another moment of life. In this way, rather than a destination, the pursuit of immortality is simply the unravelling of the natural desire to exist from moment to moment.

As long as their is mystery, discovery, and creation possible in this reality, count me in!

[cafinatedcowboy]

I've never seen it put in terms quite like that (I'm pretty new to these forums). If I understand you correctly, you're saying you're talking about not having to worry about death messing up your plans, and not necesarily "living forever." I find this way of thinking a little easier to digest than the latter, but I'm sort of old fasioned.

[jestersloath]

In my own oppinon immortalty would be cool yes, at 1st, then when people start to die,death really does mess up your plans, and never going away watching loved one after loved one die off while you still stand,thats my ULTIMINTE fear

never dieing...