X-Message-Number: 16558
Date: Sat, 16 Jun 2001 17:40:23 -0500
From: david pizer <>
Subject: We want your ideas!

Constructing an argument for support of cryonic suspension.
Your ideas are appreciated.
By David Pizer

The Venturists hope to have the resort part (open to the general public) of
VentureVille completed one year from now and the larger dwellings (more
like condos or single family homes for immortalists only) completed in
about two years from now.  We are not able to give more details than this
at this time.  However, with these completion dates in mind and since this
is not so far in the future any more, we are now ready to start working on
our primary argument for cryonics.  We will want this argument as our
foundation for our work from VentureVille in trying to persuade the rest of
the world that biological immortality is good and worth pursuing.   (Of
course we will be doing lots of other fun things there too, like hiking,
swimming, horse riding, sports, have our own observatory, hold conferences
on interesting subjects and living in one of the most pleasant places in
the USA, and one of the safest, also).  

This argument's basic premises have to be true and the form valid and
sound, and at the same time not too difficult for the nontechnical,
presently non-immortalist person to understand the basic premises and
understand why they lead to the conclusion, which is something like "One
(everyone) ought to get signed up right away."  

This is not an easy task in my opinion, because cryonics has been around so
long and yet there are so few signed up.  Something is wrong.  Myself, I
was easily persuaded by just reading a brief article (that was intended to
poke fun at it), in the newspaper about 20 years ago, and further persuaded
by the well-done arguments in  "The Prospect of Immortality."  But now
after being around so long, these things do not seem to be persuading too
many others.  We need to try to improve.

It seems that some of the basic premises of this new and powerful argument
must address:
1.	Why life is valuable to live;
2.	Why biological immortality is apt to come along soon;
3.	Why cryonics might provide a vehicle to that future time.
4.	Why the future will be a great place to be.

Each premise is very complicated and it can be a small argument on the way
to combining all four.

 The first premise, why life is valuable to live, must show why life is
valuable to live as an end, and not merely as a means to some other end.
It can be a means and an end, but the premise must not merely be a means.
I think we present immortalists do realize that life is valuable for the
quality and enjoyment of living it, in and of that reason(s) alone.  How do
we convince others of this?

The first premise could also address why being dead is not a good thing.

I believe the first premise is where the most work is needed to convince
others that the rest of the argument is worth considering.  If they are not
convinced by the end of the argument for the fist premise, they are not
going to seriously consider anything further in this work.

The second premise could be based on the latest findings in the scientific
community.
The third premise will have to be based on what is going on in the small
cryonics research area.

To have the maximum convincing power the argument must start with
rock-solid assumptions.  The kind of starting place Descartes started with.
 It might also include a starting place with something as obvious as
something cannot be made from nothing.   Only by starting with the most
unchallengeable assumptions can this argument have its maximum chance of
convincing others.

I realize that certain scientific developments to increase the odds of
cryonics working do not exist yet.  This argument has to convince without
those advancements being achieved yet, as that is the position we are in at
this time.  The sooner many people realize there is a viable prospect for
immortality, and that immortality is worth achieving, the sooner more
people will put resources into this movement and therefore, the sooner this
goal can be achieved.  After saving your own life, an argument can be made
that the next highest thing a human can do is help save others.  If you
don't like this, you can at least accept that as you help others get into
this movement, you are also helping yourself.  If you don't like this, then
you probably are wasting your time reading this.

If anyone cares to start this project off, I would like to see some samples
on this forum.  Don't be shy.  Consider this a brain-storming project.
Even if you don't have ideas on the complete argument, your ideas on any
part of it are solicited.


David Pizer

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