X-Message-Number: 1144 Date: 14 Aug 92 13:02:24 EDT From: Charles Platt <> Subject: CRYONICS Re Obligations to Loved Ones in Suspension: I am extremely interested by Paul Wakfer's comment that emotional/sexual bonding is symptomatic of insufficiently developed sense of self. Paul is (seemingly) one of the most self-sufficient people I have ever met, and I admire his ability not to need romantic entanglements. And yet--as a human being, I find it easier and more pleasant to acquiesce to the animal needs (weaknesses?) of the human spirit. Romance has greatly enriched my life, over the years. At the same time, of course, romance has great potential to cause pain. That's what I was getting at when I said that cryonics could worsen the state of having lost one's mate. The pain of loss when someone dies conventionally should diminish more rapidly than if that person is in cryonic suspension. The hope of being reunited in the future is worth a lot, but it is not a guarantee. In the meantime, one has to live in the present. As for *imposing* sexual fidelity--Paul misunderstands my point. Someone who is monogamous by choice might feel a lingering *desire* to be "faithful" to the suspended spouse, without this being imposed in any way. I imagine that if my wife were in suspension, and I believed there was a good chance of her being revived some day, it would make me feel uneasy to start seeing someone new. I'm sure that this would diminish with time--but again, it would not diminish as fast as it would if my spouse had died conventionally. Rate This Message: http://www.cryonet.org/cgi-bin/rate.cgi?msg=1144