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At 10:38 AM 1/31/04 -0800, Robert wrote:<br><br>
<blockquote type=cite class=cite cite>Max and Damien have had some
discussion with respect to significant<br>
philosophical perspectives...<br><br>
Lets look at:<br>
> >I suppose it's impossible or at least very hard to convince you
to leave out<br>
> >cult-sounding brand-positioning phrases such as `our extropic
goals'.<br><br>
For myself personally there is not really any "our".
Extropic goals<br>
are extropic goals -- nobody can lay claim to them other than
perhaps<br>
by pointing them out (e.g. hey -- "XYZZY is an extropic
goal).</blockquote><br>
True to a point. FM-2030 transhuman goals were based on individual
"rates of change" and students rated their ability to adapt to
the future. These rates became "goals" with which to
calculate how much and in what areas changes were, and were desired, to
take place in adapting to the future. In our gatherings, these
became our combined efforts, since were probably less than 6 degrees of
separation between us.<br><br>
<blockquote type=cite class=cite cite>Now where extropic and
transhumanistic thought in general<br>
may be failing to fulfill it potential may be with respect<br>
to the detailed analysis of where actions or priorities<br>
may be distinctly unextropic.</blockquote><br>
Unextropic would be untranshumanistic, since extropic thinking is an
ultimate transhumanist brain-wave, don't you think? I might be
wrong, but if transhumanism is an extropic cultural movement, then this
would be true.<br><br>
<blockquote type=cite class=cite cite>So we have Sunday mornings.
Most extropians sit at home<br>
enjoying their brunch. Why are they not down at the<br>
local religious institution handing out flyers questioning<br>
the basic premise that "thou shalt not bear false witness<br>
against thy neighbor" (the 9th commandment) which would<br>
seem to doom any argument that christianity has some<br>
prior claim against non-christian (or extropic) perspectives.<br><br>
So once one tosses out the faith based perspectives then<br>
one has the freedom to argue rationality.<br><br>
The trick with "extropic goals" is to figure out what is
really<br>
going to move us in that direction. I can promote genetic<br>
technologies that increase our general knowledge base. I<br>
can also point out technologies that would limit that knowledge<br>
base to a few narrowly educated individuals.</blockquote><br>
Precisely. Good point. Herein, I think that what is
imperative is to recognize that the future happens across social change
theories and that multi-tracking of rates of change (or calculating rate
of change on a multi-track level, wherein more than one area of expertise
in a many areas are valued) would be advantageous.<br><br>
Natasha<br><br>
<blockquote type=cite class=cite cite>_______________________________________________<br>
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</blockquote>
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<dd><font face="Viner Hand ITC" size=4 color="#000080">Natasha Vita-More</font><font face="Times New Roman, Times" color="#0000FF">
<dd><a href="http://www.natasha.cc/" eudora="autourl">http://www.natasha.cc</a><hr>
</font>
<dd><font face="Times New Roman, Times">President, Extropy Institute <a href="http://www.extropy.org/" eudora="autourl">http://www.extropy.org</a>
<dd>Founder, Transhumanist Arts & Culture <a href="http://www.transhumanist.biz/" eudora="autourl">http://www.transhumanist.biz</a></font>
<dd><font face="Times New Roman, Times"><a href="http://www.transhuman.org/" eudora="autourl">http://www.transhuman.org</a> </font>
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