X-Message-Number: 2330
Subject: CRYONICS: Freedom of Choice
Date: Wed, 07 Jul 1993 20:52:19 -0400
From: "Perry E. Metzger" <>


Saul Kent says:
> 	I agree with you that the "continued fragmentation of the very
> limited resources available for cryonics" is unfortunate.  I've been
> trying very hard this year to persuade the Alcor Board to consider the
> possibility of Alcor offering the services of both the Alcor team and
> Mike Darwin's team, but the board has refused to consider this
> possibility in a serious manner.

I don't know if I would use Mike's services or Alcor's "primary"
services or someone else's services if given the chance, but I do know
that I would prefer to be given the choice. I can see no legitimate
reason why a system that permitted people to unbundle their suspension
service from their care service cannot be completely practical.
Perhaps it would cost a bit more for the paperwork and the like -- but
this is my life I'm talking about, and I'd gladly pay a little if it
meant that I could get get better care.

As I have said in the past, I would like to see cryonics organizations
completely unbundled someday, with suspension, patient care, and trust
management services available a la carte. However, for the moment, it
would be good if Alcor would allow people to at the very least allow
people some partial unbundling in the sense of allowing the use of
Mike's suspension services. 

I will point out, by the way, that it might also be nice if you could
unbundle your trust fund management -- provided a reasonable mechanism
could be found to allow this. Presumably, your contract with Alcor
would require that you provide proof that a trust capable of providing
adequite funding is in place or will be in place upon your death in
the stead of money going into the patient care fund. (This might mean
that if you pick a bad bank to handle the funds that you end up
defrosted in twenty years -- but it might also provide you with more
safety if you are canny.  Caveat emptor.)

Most cryonicists are libertarians, and therefore have a passing
familiarity with the benefits of free markets. I think anything that
increases the choices available to the consumer can only be for the
good in the long run.

Perry

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