X-Message-Number: 5238 Date: Wed, 22 Nov 95 13:16:39 From: Steve Bridge <> Subject: Women and fear of death To CryoNet >From Steve Bridge November 22, 1995 In reply to: Message #5230 From: (Thomas Donaldson) Subject: Re: CryoNet #5212 - #5225 Date: Tue, 21 Nov 1995 11:59:11 -0800 (PST) >Apparently, if we are to believe the poll, women are bothered by fear of >death more than men. Yet more men than women become cryonicists. >Assuming this poll is correct and relevant (perhaps both are large >assumptions) it may tell us something very interesting: most cryonicists >have not become cryonicists because they fear death. Two thoughts here: Fear of death may make someone extremely *unlikely* to consider cryonics. After all, do many people who are afraid of speaking in public look for solutions to their fear, or do they reflexively avoid all mention of the subject? Do people who are phobically afraid of spiders aggressively work to eliminate spiders from the face of the earth? No, they somehow see the spiders as more powerful than they are and they avoid them completely. Someone who is deeply afraid of death would not be likely to confront a *solution* to it, because they would have to FACE DEATH and go to battle with it. If more women are afraid of death than men, this could be a major reason why more women are not signed up. Secondly, at least three Alcor/Cryonics Magazine polls over the years have shown the same thing: very few cryonicists (maybe 5%) are so because they are afraid of death. Most respondents claimed that their interest was to see the future or because they liked being alive. They were active answers ("I have things to do") rather than passive ones ("I have something to avoid"). This also fits with Thomas's contention below: >And given that most are men, there may be a good explanation for why they >join: cryonics is a means to CONTROL death, as we have tried through >history to control many other events and things. On average, men are more likely to attempt to control circumstances (or other people); women are more likely to cooperate with them. >Finally: if Mr. Skrecky has written a "funny piece" about cryonics, why >isn't he brave enough to post it here? I guess Thomas missed that one. Skrecky's post was Message #5143. Steve Bridge Rate This Message: http://www.cryonet.org/cgi-bin/rate.cgi?msg=5238