[ExI] Longevity Party

[Stefano Vaj]

On 25 September 2012 23:16, Adrian Tymes <atymes at gmail.com> wrote:

> On Tue, Sep 25, 2012 at 1:12 PM, Stefano Vaj <stefano.vaj at gmail.com>
> wrote:
> > It would seem that being a life-extensionist would mean being
> > "pro-life" (as in "abortion and drugs and euthanasia and birth control
> > and dangerous sports and touristic cryonics prohibitionists").
>
> Not necessarily.
>

Hey, I am pretty persuaded myself that this is unnecessary. :-)

This is what I posted:

<<I am at a loss here. As a transhumanist, I have been supporting longevism
forever, but at the same time I certainly do support the "free sale of
lethal drugs", birth control, freedom of suicide, abortion and euthanasia.
"Longevism", as I understand it, is not about extending (the number and/or
duration of) "lives", is about extending *lifespans" - that is, CHOICE. I
hate being forced to die, but I suspect that I would equally hate being
forced to live, or even being morally criticised because I do not want to
do it anymore. And what about dangerous activities, such as risky sports
that can be proved to shorten rather than to extend statistically the
duration of one's life? Is the Longevity Party really in the business of
condemning, if not forbidding, alpinism, scuba diving and motocross?>>


> Also: one-issue parties.  What is the Longevity Party's stance on, say:
> * Fusion vs. solar/wind research
> * The best strategies to keep Iran from going nuclear, assuming this
> is desired
> * Israel's Palestinian settlements, and other nuances of Israel vs.
> Palestine that don't immediately directly impact our lifespans
> * Sports drug problems, and the liabilities (if any) resultant from them
> (since liability is a matter of law, and thus government)
>

It is my understanding that one-issue parties, especially in anglo-saxon
countries, do not necessarily intend to take over Downing Street or the
White House, but pose a sufficient threat to large parties to make them
realise that a constituency exists behind a given platform and that its
needs and wishes must be catered for.

OTOH, there are parties (say, the Green) who started single-issue and
progressively adopted positions on most current debates...

I have no idea what the Longevity Party expects or intends for its future
in this respect.

-- 
Stefano Vaj
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