X-Message-Number: 27795 References: <> From: David Stodolsky <> Subject: Re: Cryonics/Life Extension Survey "Beta Date: Mon, 3 Apr 2006 19:04:43 +0200 On 2 Apr 2006, at 23:58, Jeff Davis wrote: > This is prefatory to my point, which is that the > "Cryonics is a longshot" meme -- whole cloth, > prejudicial, non-fact-based crap -- needs to be > aggressively challenged. Many consider social factors as the major risk to revival. Chomsky's recent book suggests that the USA is turning into a 'failed state' that will not control violence within its own boarders. He was interviewed on Democracy Now! last week and I found his argument convincing, unfortunately. Given the continuing terrorist activity against medical facilities providing abortion services, the risk to cryonics facilities is high - should cryonics be seized upon as an issue by religious fanatics. Ref: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0805079122 Failed States : The Abuse of Power and the Assault on Democracy by Noam Chomsky Book Description The world's foremost critic of U.S. foreign policy exposes the hollow promises of democracy in American actions abroad and at home The United States has repeatedly asserted its right to intervene against failed states around the globe. In this much anticipated sequel to his international bestseller Hegemony or Survival, Noam Chomsky turns the tables, charging the United States with being a failed state, and thus a danger to its own people and the world. Failed states Chomsky writes, are those that do not protect their citizens from violence and perhaps even destruction, that regard themselves as beyond the reach of domestic or international law, and that suffer from a democratic deficit,' having democratic forms but with limited substance. Exploring recent U.S. foreign and domestic policies, Chomsky assesses Washington's escalation of the nuclear risk; the dangerous consequences of the occupation of Iraq; and America's self-exemption from international law. He also examines an American electoral system that frustrates genuine political alternatives, thus impeding any meaningful democracy. Forceful, lucid, and meticulously documented, Failed States offers a comprehensive analysis of a global superpower that has long claimed the right to reshape other nations while its own democratic institutions are in severe crisis, and its policies and practices have recklessly placed the world on the brink of disaster. Systematically dismantling America's claim to being the world's arbiter of democracy, Failed States is Chomsky's most focused and urgent critique to date. dss David Stodolsky Skype: davidstodolsky Rate This Message: http://www.cryonet.org/cgi-bin/rate.cgi?msg=27795