[ExI] How many current members of ExI?

[Brent Allsop]

Hi Spike,

On Sat, Apr 18, 2020 at 2:17 PM spike jones via extropy-chat <
extropy-chat at lists.extropy.org> wrote:

>
>
> *From:* Brent Allsop <brent.allsop at gmail.com>
> *Subject:* Re: [ExI] How many current members of ExI?
>
>
>
> Just information for atheist trans humanists who can't organize, The
> membership of the Mormon Transumanists Association
> <https://transfigurism.org/> continues to grow exponentially.  I believe
> they are now approaching 1000 members, and they are now actively involved
> in their bi annual elections.
>
>
>
> You should definitely keep them in the loop for any transhumanist
> activities, if you want to expand participation.
>



> Brent’s comments should be considered carefully in the context of our
> focus here.
>
Thanks


> Note that I am not making any commentary or inquiry on Brent’s religious
> views, (and encourage others to not ask (for that is poor form))
>

I disagree with this, please ask away.  And I've probably expressed all the
below before, here, so just skip, if you've already heard.

I'm a "Mormon Transhumansit Atheists", if anyone is asking.  I keep the
best of the beliefs, and chuck the obviously absurd junk in any of it,
including atheists' inability to work together on anything.  Where is the
local atheists choir, let alone local meeting place. That's' what I want to
know.  The closest you come are Universal Unitarian churches, I tried that
a bit, but that is more proof that they can't organize, compared to any LDS
ward, and their ward choir, home teachers, visiting teachers, a member in
the ward responsible for the Marine's at Camp Pendleton near San Diego,
driving out to Camp Pendelton every sunday to pick them up and take them to
church, and serve them dinner!!! at a time we are VERY wordies about him.
a meetinghouse in every neighborhood.........

I tried to join "Atheists of Utah".  When I moved back to Utah, I found
them meeting in a coffee shop.  I was so happy to find them, and was asking
how do I become one of them.  They said: "I think you talk to that guy over
there."  So I went up to talk to him.  He told me I just needed to donate
$35, and I'd be in, and he gave me the PayPall address of the organization
so I could do that.  I went home sent in my $35, and was so proud to be an
atheist of utah.  That is, until a few months latter, I got a letter from
PayPal saying there was nobody willing to take the money, so they were
refunding the $35 back to my account!!  Mormons would NEVER have a problem
taking you your money, and boy the things they are able to do with it.


> but I do recognize that religion in general, and LDS specifically is a
> religion that has its socially-redeeming qualities, such as promotion of
> family life (note that I am definitely not promoting over-breeding (keep it
> to two or less.))
>

I disagree with this also,  How are we ever going to fill the galaxy with
life, without having LOTS of children?  I have 3 great adult kids, and
consider not having more the biggest mistake of my life.



> Second thing in SDA: that religion holds that when a person perishes, they
> are on hold, no conscious existence in any form.  They exist as stored data
> until they are re-assembled at a later time.  This notion turns out to be
> perfectly compatible with cryonics.  The SDA people I talk to are very
> open-minded to the idea of cryonics, generally more so than other
> religions.  The SDA people recognize that a cryonaut is not going to be
> re-created in the flesh, but rather are candidates for a future software
> existence, such as Startrek Next Generation holodeck.  The SDA people can
> see definite advantages to that: their holodeck avatar can teach their
> great^5 grandchildren about their religion.  Shrugs, OK then.  Whatever
> works for you.
>

Interesting.  I didn't know you had this much to do with SDA.  Yes, I think
the Jehovah's witnesses have this same belief about nothing after death.
I'm doing my best to convert the LDS to this doctrine, that is really hard
for me.  Can you imagine dying, then being a ghost in some neither world of
the dead???  There is no way, being separated from the living as a ghost
could be anything other than eternal damnation.  Yet everyone just
completely ignores that necessary truth/fact and appears to receive so much
warmth and joy from the idea.

They almost didn't allow us to have my father's (a long time dedicated
truly believing member and good friends with everyone in his ward) funeral
in their ward building, because I had him cryonically preserved. Just a
neuro, we had the body in a closed casket at the funeral.  In addition to
having funerals in church buildings for almost anyone, the LDS Relief
Society fixes dinner for the extended family, after the funeral, all for
free.  But all this was conditional on not mentioning cryonic preservation
(at least in that ward with their particular bishop).  That just ripped me
apart.



>  LDS: the theory has humans becoming gods.  I don’t claim to be an
> authority on LDS, but that looks to me to be very compatible with the
> notion of transhumanism.  Imagine… we find that most transhumanists come
> from an LDS background and most cryonicists come from SDA.
>

Yes, very interesting observations.

Brent
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