[extropy-chat] future-sceptic jibes in the press

[kevin.osborne]

coming after the 'transhumanist nut jobs' comment from Wired that was
noted on the list recently, here's a little nugget buried in a 9/11
counterhistory piece from New York magazine
(http://newyorkmetro.com/news/features/19147/):

"Now, let's be clear, we're well aware that the dangers of
counterfactual speculation ... are almost as grave as those of
unbridled futurism."

Not exactly a ringing endorsement of the positions staked out on this list.

Are the press actually quite right to call *bullshit* on us
'transhumanist nut jobs'? are our attempts to piece together
predictive insights into a singularity path just as flaky a house of
cards as second coming foreseers?

Maybe it's time for a bit of searching introspection to ask if our
assumptions are junk, whether we are 'Crazy People', and maybe find
out what it is about our message that seems to have such a whiff.

Is our 'The Singularity Is Near!' hype-train just as nutty as the
wackos with 'The End is Nigh'  body hoardings?

Are we being just as foolish as christians since year dot thinking
that 'Judgement Day' will be in their lifetimes? Like the early
christians who rutted and stole so badly in their belief the that
jesus was coming back next tuesday that the early church was forced to
include the 'ten commandments' into the christian doctrine?
(supposedly in about A.D 80, for the history curious). 2000 years
later and they're still playing "Where's Waldo".

I remember seeing a black and white 1940's era movie as a kid in 1983
that had the hero driving a flying bubble-mobile circa 1980; I
remember thinking the eight year-old equivalent of 'what a bunch of
jackasses'