X-Message-Number: 18482 From: "Toby Christensen" <> Date: Mon, 04 Feb 2002 19:25:22 +0800 Subject: Technology and humanity. I would agree that the path of humanity will be towards great things, but we need to draw the line and not so much as stick our little toes over it. For example, if a person appeared who could help me concentrate on and enjoy novels, drive a car, kick at waist height, tie my shoelaces etc, (and there have been quacks who have claimed as much), then I would gladly accept that offer. If they then offered to help me psychokinetically move stars in the sky, I would tell them not to worry about THAT. I'm not asking to play God, as playing Toby as Toby was intended is fine by me. If I want adoration, I get that from my dog. If I want better faculties, I'll work harder to get my group for research into brain injury in Australia into action (and become a member of a cryonics organization to make sure I too can enjoy the fruits of my labour). If I want more life, cryonics again, along with effective utilization of the time I have now. We need to set boundaries; what will we endow ourselves with given the chance? Nanotechnology and cryonics are good and worthy technologies that will build as close to Paradise as you can get in an imperfect Universe, but will we go even further and end up as hovering quasi-gods in space somewhere directing cosmic phenomena with our minds or something and thereby lose our humanity? I am asking for substantially less than a lot of people who are interested in cryonics. I also know a lot of people in the world ARE stupid enough to dislike vaccines and such. They're just mired in their religious or personal convictions and we can rightly condemn them until the cows come home but we also need to look at our own motives. Seriously, I believe proper functioning is the birthright of everybody. It is not too much to ask and neither should it be. -- _______________________________________________ Sign-up for your own FREE Personalized E-mail at Mail.com http://www.mail.com/?sr=signup Win a ski trip! http://www.nowcode.com/register.asp?affiliate=1net2phone3a Rate This Message: http://www.cryonet.org/cgi-bin/rate.cgi?msg=18482