[ExI] De Thezier's New Year's Resolution: Quit Transhumanism

[x at extropica.org]

[Forwarded on behalf of Jef]

On 1/1/08, De Thezier <dethezier at gmail.com> wrote (at CybDem):
>
> My New Year's Resolution: Quit Transhumanism
>
> However, the more months passed, the more my angst grew about how the term "transhumanist" was giving me an identity at the cost of achieving of my goals. It also seemed that I was spending far more time trying to convert people to transhumanism and knee-jerkingly defending this ideology against hysterical attacks but also fair and accurate criticisms, than actually contributing to the social struggle to democratize the costs, risks and benefits of new technologies.
>
> But, more profoundly, having invested so much time and energy in promoting transhumanism --- and let's be honest, having been seduced by the syren songs of a ''posthuman future'' --- I came to the awkward realization that I, a self-professed free and critical thinker, had willingly blinded myself to the flaws of transhumanism which I became increasing aware were inherencies that *undermine* any diversity of views or ''leftist awakening'' among transhumanists:
>
> 1. An uncritical support for technology in general and fringe science in particular;
> 2. A distortive ''us vs them'' tribe-like mentality and identity; and
> 3. A vulnerability to unrealistic utopian and dystopian ''future hype''.

Justice --

An excellent post, and congratulations for breaking free of the traps
of transhumanism as you've described.  I strongly agree with much of
what you've written above, and I admire your passion and conviction,
but I look forward to the (possible) day when you realize a similar
stance with regard to Leftist politics.

*********

My key point here is that you and so many others remain focused on
"goals" and group identification, heuristics by virtue of having
served our ancestors well, but which upon deeper inspection, as you've
pointed out, lead to conflict.

But in contrast, and what eludes common consideration, here as
elsewhere in the context of politics, is that we do in fact share
significant **values** which here might be well-described as
"techno-progressive" [not necessarily "progressive" in the sense
co-opted by the Left], which could be modeled with some (increasing)
degree of coherence, supporting cooperative action with the intent of
discovering an increasingly desirable future by creating it.

In short, consider the paradox:  You're frustrated and leaving because
of conflict over thinking and goals -- despite very substantial
agreement on values.

Paradox is always a case of insufficient context.  In the bigger
picture all the pieces must fit.

Extra credit:  Show how nearly all members of this list could agree
they hold "techno-progressive" values, except to the extent that
"progressive" is taken to mean Leftist politics.

*********

Intentional growth in terms of increasingly effective promotion of an
increasing context of increasingly coherent values, evolving with
interaction over increasing scope of consequences isn't
well-facilitated by either "liberal" or "libertarian" extremes, but by
increasingly smart solutions to an inherently hard problem, one that
becomes harder as it contributes to the expansion of its own context.

I wish you and the other members of this list a new year of growth and
increasing opportunities, not necessarily in the direction you might
choose today, but in a direction that becomes clearer with increasing
awareness of your own evolving values and increasingly effective means
for their promotion.

- Jef
[who wishes he could express such thoughts using fewer symbols -- a
picture perhaps]