X-Message-Number: 19089 From: "Mark Plus" <> Subject: Sir Arthur-Sahib Date: Wed, 15 May 2002 17:39:25 -0700 Damien Broderick wrote: >And I suspect projected culture shock is part of it; already, he has lived through appallingly disruptive changes, and even a fellow as far-seeing as Sir Arthur Clarke is understandably reluctant to awaken in a future almost unbearably disjunct from his past--even if those who revive and rejuvenate the preserved are wonderful psychologists, and the newly awakened live for as long as they wish in a comforting transitional enclave. Along these lines, I've wondered whether Clarke fears his politically incorrect lifestyle -- living like a Raj-era sahib -- wouldn't be practical if Sri Lanka develops into a wealthy tropical island country like Taiwan or Singapore. He wouldn't be able to hire servants as cheaply in a country with modern wage rates, though as compensation he might be able to rent or buy sarong-wearing androids to do the housework. As for cryonicists' psychological adjustment to some future society, I haven't felt comfortable in my culture for a long time any way, so future weirdness is just more of the same to me. I find the current wave of Seventies nostalgia especially baffling -- the pop culture of the Seventies wasn't that good the first time around, so why are they bothering to repackage it? Mark Plus _________________________________________________________________ Send and receive Hotmail on your mobile device: http://mobile.msn.com Rate This Message: http://www.cryonet.org/cgi-bin/rate.cgi?msg=19089