X-Message-Number: 24884
From: "Michael C Price" <>
References: <>
Subject: Wrap-up comments about Death and Immortalism
Date: Thu, 21 Oct 2004 08:08:00 +0100

>> all finite lifespans are valueless.
> 
>    It seems to me that our dialog has boiled down to this, 
> which seems to simply be a statement of your values 
> which I cannot personally relate to. 

Fair enough; I can't relate to non-immortalist values.

Here's another angle: part of the psychological maturation
process is the development of delayed gratification, a 
mechanism by which the planning for future gratification 
generates current gratification.  Immortalists have just
taken this process further than other people so that they
value future gratification as much as present gratification; 
in this sense they are more mature than even life 
extensionists (who still discount the future).

>     Aging and death are my "mortal enemies". This being
> the case, you may think I would be an "immortalist",
> but wanting to avoid death and believing that immortality
> is possible are two different things. 

Of course they are.  One is a value, the other an 
assessment of what's possible.

> To leap immediately
> from the former to the latter is *wishful thinking*, 

Obviously.  Just as it would be wishful thinking for
a life-extensionist to leap from wishing to extend their
lifespan to thinking that it is possible.

> something I try to avoid. 

Me too.

> I believe death is inevitable, but in my case
> I hope that I can avoid it for many thousands of years, 
> at least. 

I do not claim to know enough about the workings of the 
universe to state that death is inevitable; clearly we don't 
yet know enough to settle the issue of whether immortality 
is *possible*; but I know I want it, nevertheless.

Cheers,
Michael C Price

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