[ExI] A Transhumanist Terrorist Manifesto

Mon May 14 17:37:24 UTC 2007

Good

Let's formulate a statement of intent about what transhumanism is and what
it isn't. Better still, let's classify or group transhumanism into several
subcurrents
such as libertarian transhumanism, social-democratic transhumanism and
neo-fascist transhumanism. Let's give this TTM ideology a name and let's
distance
ourselves from it, place a fence around it. Treat it like an infection, a
disease
and an unnacceptable ideology.

Create a wiki entry as soon as possible. Throw it out into the open.

But let us please acknowledge that this current of hacker-ist anarchism does
in fact exist and that any people, if excluded, ostracized, marginalized or
alienated
will in fact use transhuman technologies contrary to any ideal, morality or
flavor of humanism.

So we all convene here at this "place", at this time and declare
transhumanism
a moral movement that aims to achieve the good for all people, and we deny
small viking styled nihilists a platform? Are we read to create such a
counter-
manifesto?

Then let's be very inclusive. In ten, twenty years time some marginalized
third world
group will say the same using different arguments. They could be
neo-marxists who
claim technology is everyone's, or the property of "the collective" or the
gift of
Allah or Zenu, and all means are legitimate in getting a share of the cake.
Yes I am
saying that "we", us rich selfrighteous highly educated, well fed westerners
should
acknowledge that one day these neo-transhumanists might crawl out of the
woodwork
labelling themselves transhumanists with a manifesto more akin to the one
above than
any humane, solidary ideology.

If abundance passes by the world's losers, I won't begrudge the world's
losers in
rebelling and coming after the winners in the game with everything they got.

So I advocate creating a counter-manifesto as soon as possible that not only
denies
fascism or nihilism or viking style aggressive egocentrism - but also says
LOUDLY that
being part of transhumanism means sharing accumulated abundance equitable
with
those who didn't get a fair hand in the global struggle.

If we don't "we" are hypocrites and cowards and the author of TTM wins.

On 5/14/07, Richard Loosemore <rpwl at lightlink.com> wrote:
>
>
> People,
>
> I don't think anyone is taking this seriously enough.
>
> It is not a matter of *whether* this 'manifesto' will be taken as
> representative of what transhumanists believe, it is a question of
> *when* some media outlet picks it up and brands the entire transhumanist
>   movement as a terrorist group.  That is what media outlets do:  their
> job is extremist portrayals.  Now that kevine.osborne has done this, it
> will sit there as a ticking bomb.
>
> I see two choices.  One is to repudiate the thing strongly enough to
> expunge it from the record.  If necessary, shut down the list completely
> and reconstitute under a new name.  It is not enough to say "I
> personally repudiate this".  It has to be expunged in such a thorough
> way that this group of people are seen to have taken the most drastic
> action possible to dissociate themselves from it.
>
> The other is to do nothing and just say "we disagree with this".  Then
> it is just a matter of time before it blows up in your face.
>
> Although I have been in this field for a long time, and am a significant
> participant on other lists, I have only recently joined the extropians
> list itself.  If the drastic rejection of this manifesto I suggested
> above does not take place within a very short time, I am out of here.  I
> will not be associated in any way with an organization that tolerates
> this kind of declaration to stay on the record.
>
>
> Richard Loosemore.
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> kevin.osborne wrote:
> > Not genuinely trying to be dystopic/cataclysic here, but:
> >
> > Surely the thought that the political/academic/cultural transhumanism
> > of today may one day be adjuncted with a military/security wing has
> > been posited previously?
> >
> > And If not, why not? As altruistic and peace-loving as we may be, we
> > seem ripe for xenophobic suppression as a minority. It may well be
> > that the majority of H+ are pacifists, but do not count all of us
> > among your number. None of us like war and bloodshed. All of us know
> > that it will mean children dead by the sword. But surely a posthuman
> > holocaust is a real and cognizable risk?
> >
> > As we spiral down the well into the singularity, unprecedented levels
> > of tumult are foreseeable.
> >
> > It seems almost preordained that one day certain sections of the
> > movement will become anathema to others within the global community;
> > religious types stand out as initial likely candidates, but
> > state-sponsored policing institutions may well take umbrage also.
> >
> > Sooner or later a leader of ours will be imprisoned, and later still
> > someone will be assassinated.
> >
> > It may become that the Luddites will decide the only good posthuman is
> > a dead one. I don't think I'm being very outlandish here. Human nature
> > is what it is. If a religious fundamentalist sticks an icepick through
> > your head, all the cryo in the world isn't going to bring you back.
> >
> > The defacement of public works and monuments is a time-honored
> > tradition of civil disobedience, political unrest and revolution.
> > Blowing up a statue - as long as no-one dies - doesn't seem beyond the
> > pale to me. It just doesn't. Yes it is a slippery slope, but exactly
> > what kind of slope did you think this H+ thing was on?
> >
> > It seems like some were just hoping to squeak through the uplift door
> > without anyone noticing. And if so, why? What the heck does that say
> > about who you are, or who you are going to be? I'd rather die now for
> > a cause I'm prepared to stand up for than live on as a someone who had
> > to pretend their way into being something more than human. Is that the
> > humanity you are wanting to preserve? Is that the future you are
> > promising? This is your preferred mode of operation that finds other
> > methods so distasteful?
> >
> > I'm sure it would be better for all of us if there were no need to
> > fight in order to attain our future. I just don't think we should bank
> > on it. I think the cultural, academic and political wings of
> > transhumanism are its lifeblood, engine room and conscience
> > respectively. But I think we are going to need more than that. I think
> > in your heart of hearts some of you do also.
> >
> > I don't want to stand by while some of out greatest minds whither and
> > die of old age. I'm a young man, and can fight for their cause. I can
> > breathe with forthright vigor and impetus while they count down to the
> > last breath they may take.  I don't think they want to go, and yet
> > with our dawdling and bumbling we tacitly accept their demise.
> >
> > Fighting for the future doesn't have to mean violence. But we should
> > be fighting, yearning, reaching. Transcendence should be a blaze of
> > glory upon a pyre of our achievement, not a pained and delayed excuse
> > carried over the line only by its own momentum and apologized for
> > throughout.
> >
> > Posthumanity and the singularity will be the pinnacle of human
> > achievement. We should achieve it in a manner of 'arete', not in a
> > manner of conflict avoidance and procrastination.
> >
> > It is -our- future. We should fight for it. We should protect those
> > who matter to us from harm. We should resist suppression and
> > persecution.
> >
> > We should Transcend.
> > _______________________________________________
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> > http://lists.extropy.org/mailman/listinfo.cgi/extropy-chat
> >
> >
>
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