X-Message-Number: 25272 Date: Sat, 11 Dec 2004 10:33:53 -0500 From: Randolfe Wicker <> Subject: IS CRYONICS ISOLATIONIST ? Content-type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1 Content-transfer-encoding: 7BIT Is cryonics isolationist? I have wondered about that idea since becoming involved here. I immensely enjoy keeping up on daily news and postings. However, I find that few "cryonics first" people are involved at The Immortality Institute although most of those most active there see cryonics as their only "option" for defeating death at this time. I would like to see more passionate cryonauts posting there. As you will see from the introduction about distributing a small four-inch flier at a conference in NYC last Thursday night, we share "exclusion" with several other groups. BIOTECH CONFERENCE FOR LIBERALS How conservatives controlled the agenda, 12/9/2004 By RANDOLFE WICKER When I first heard about "THE NEXT FOUR YEARS, THE BIOTECH AGENDA, THE HUMAN FUTURE: What direction for liberals and progressives? A post-election symposium" being held at City University of New York's Auditorium just twenty minutes from home at 34th Street and Fifth Avenue, I thought it was worth checking out. (Links will be posted throughout this report and then will be posted again at the end to enable a reader to explore those of interest now or later in the least disruptive manner possible.) www.genetics-and-society.org/nextfouryears I received a confirmation on November 8th simply saying, " Thank you for your interest. Your registration has been noted. Please note seating is on a first come first serve basis, so we advise you to arrive early to ensure a good seat." Signed simply, "The Graduate Center, 212-817-8215". I made a mental note to keep Thursday, 12/9/04, open. The conference site was overflowing with grim slippery-slope doomsday scenarios about how biotechnology was either about to take over the world or might just simply destroy it. I 'd masochistically endured many such conferences in person or via the Internet since founding the reproductive human cloning movement in 1997. It wasn't that anything was above scrutiny; it was the way bioethicists used "fear of biotechnology" as the coin of their realm just as many religionists used "fear of hellfire" as the coin of their realm. Bioethicists, after all is said and done, are still captives of what can best be described as a Frankenstein science-fiction mindset. If that were not the case, their opinions would not resonate with the general public. Without the currency of popular misinformation, they would be bankrupt: fired from lucrative positions in academia; their books gone either unpublished or unread. Of course, one of the many "givens" in bioethical debate was that reproductive human cloning was beyond serious consideration. Few discussions included anyone who saw cloning as a reproductive right, or as the "religious right" to see their genotype live on into another lifetime. Those who advocated genetically-engineered enhancement and/or the scientific conquest of involuntary death were also excluded. So I, Human Cloning Activist, Immortalist, Cryonicist and Transhumanist, was part of the kooky fringe they chose to ignore. Those who worked in real world biotechnology, such as Michael West of Advanced Cell Technology, whose vision included the promise of an enhanced healthier future through biotechnology medicine and science, were demonized as "exploiters" and "profiteers". They were accused of seeking "to commodify" that last frontier left to evil capitalists: "life itself". Indeed, I respect such views. In fact, I've often suggested to journalists that they interview Dennis Kucinich, someone whose sincerity and moral viewpoint I genuinely both respect and disagree with regarding all types of cloning. So, with the stage set, I invite you to share with me the frightening adventure of going to "The Next Four Years, the Biotech Agenda, and the Human Future" and attempting to distribute a small four-inch square leaflet which read: "BEING LIBERAL IS NOT ENOUGH"_____ FOR OUR GENETICALLY ENHANCED FUTURE THE IMMORTALITY INSTITUTE: DEVOTED TO CON- QUERING THE BLIGHT OF INVOLUNTARY DEATH. WWW.IMMINST.ORG STEM CLONE DIGEST: GREATEST SOURCE FOR NEWS ABOUT BIOTECH, PRESENTED WITHOUT BIAS. WWW.STEMCLONEDIGEST.COM CLONING NEWS FOR THOSE WHO BELIEVE IN THEIR REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS ! WWW.CLONERIGHTS.COM WWW.REPRODUCTIVECLONING.NET Randolfe H. Wicker Founder, Clone Rights United Front Spokesperson, Reproductive Cloning Network Correspondent, StemClone Digest Advisor, The Immortality Institute 201-656-3280 (Mornings) (TO BE CONTINUED SOON.) Content-type: text/html; charset=iso-8859-1 [ AUTOMATICALLY SKIPPING HTML ENCODING! ] Rate This Message: http://www.cryonet.org/cgi-bin/rate.cgi?msg=25272