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I hadn't known that Hawley helped write Steve Jobs's inspiring 2005 Stanford commencement address: https://twitter.com/mjhawley/status/1173273979894796297?s=19

I hadn't known that Hawley helped write Steve Jobs's inspiring 2005 Stanford commencement address: https://twitter.com/mjhawley/status/1173273979894796297?s=19 https://twitter.com/mjhawley/status/1173273979894796297?s=19

kiba 6y ago
You mean the 'death is great' speech?
- asveikau 6y ago
  Yeah, as I recall he said something like that death is good because it keeps ideas fresh, by leaving room for future generations to do their thing instead of humanity comprising the same old individuals all the time. I don't think it's too unusual or bad for someone to have a brush with cancer and start getting philosophical about it in this way.
  - kiba 6y ago
    That's a status quo bias. Things had been happening like this for as long humanity had ever known. People either ignored it, or folks like Steve Job decided to rationalize it. It doesn't mean it's a good thing.
    - deleted 6y ago
      [deleted]
    - catalogia 6y ago
      I assume you think it's wrong. Can you explain why immortality would be good for society? Most of the transhumanists I've met don't bother justifying this belief beyond the selfish "I don't want to die." Personally I think it would lead to the ossification of culture and an astronomically enormous class divide (particularly between those who can afford immortality and those who cannot.) I'm not eager to live in a society where the ultra-billionaires like Steve Jobs can buy their way out of death, which thus-far, has been the great equalizer that even the most wealthy cannot bribe forever.
      - kiba 6y ago
        Most of the transhumanists I've met don't bother justifying this belief beyond the selfish "I don't want to die." It isn't a selfish desire. Do you want your SO to die? Your parents? Think about anyone you ever care about. Personally I think it would lead to the ossification of culture and an astronomically enormous class divide (particularly between those who can afford immortality and those who cannot.) Based on what? This society isn't the only way to organize society or the only way we ever live, assuming it is the kind of society where we get deep and rapid ossification. Sure, immortality have its own problems, but can you say that the new problems are so undesirable that we should not even attempt to solve it? I'm not eager to live in a society where the ultra-billionaires like Steve Jobs can buy their way out of death, which thus-far, has been the great equalizer that even the most wealthy cannot bribe forever. If that is the case, then it is a colossal failure for such a technology, since it only alleviated human suffering for a very handful of people. Currently, our healthcare system is suffering from a massive demand on its capabilities due incredibly ill people being needed to be cared for. Biomedical technology here, should be the great equalizer. Instead of being bankrupted by ultimately ineffective medical care, you now have more wealth to spend on things that's important to you, like living with your loved ones.
    - asveikau 6y ago
      How often have you had a brush-up against something on the scale of life and death? It can be a crazy experience. People come up with all sorts of rationalizations or decisions about "what it meant to them", good adaptations and bad ones. Let them do it, perhaps with a little less judgement. Be humble instead. Nobody completely has it all figured out.

kiba 6y ago

You mean the 'death is great' speech?

asveikau 6y ago
Yeah, as I recall he said something like that death is good because it keeps ideas fresh, by leaving room for future generations to do their thing instead of humanity comprising the same old individuals all the time. I don't think it's too unusual or bad for someone to have a brush with cancer and start getting philosophical about it in this way.
- kiba 6y ago
  That's a status quo bias. Things had been happening like this for as long humanity had ever known. People either ignored it, or folks like Steve Job decided to rationalize it. It doesn't mean it's a good thing.
  - deleted 6y ago
    [deleted]
  - catalogia 6y ago
    I assume you think it's wrong. Can you explain why immortality would be good for society? Most of the transhumanists I've met don't bother justifying this belief beyond the selfish "I don't want to die." Personally I think it would lead to the ossification of culture and an astronomically enormous class divide (particularly between those who can afford immortality and those who cannot.) I'm not eager to live in a society where the ultra-billionaires like Steve Jobs can buy their way out of death, which thus-far, has been the great equalizer that even the most wealthy cannot bribe forever.
    - kiba 6y ago
      Most of the transhumanists I've met don't bother justifying this belief beyond the selfish "I don't want to die." It isn't a selfish desire. Do you want your SO to die? Your parents? Think about anyone you ever care about. Personally I think it would lead to the ossification of culture and an astronomically enormous class divide (particularly between those who can afford immortality and those who cannot.) Based on what? This society isn't the only way to organize society or the only way we ever live, assuming it is the kind of society where we get deep and rapid ossification. Sure, immortality have its own problems, but can you say that the new problems are so undesirable that we should not even attempt to solve it? I'm not eager to live in a society where the ultra-billionaires like Steve Jobs can buy their way out of death, which thus-far, has been the great equalizer that even the most wealthy cannot bribe forever. If that is the case, then it is a colossal failure for such a technology, since it only alleviated human suffering for a very handful of people. Currently, our healthcare system is suffering from a massive demand on its capabilities due incredibly ill people being needed to be cared for. Biomedical technology here, should be the great equalizer. Instead of being bankrupted by ultimately ineffective medical care, you now have more wealth to spend on things that's important to you, like living with your loved ones.
  - asveikau 6y ago
    How often have you had a brush-up against something on the scale of life and death? It can be a crazy experience. People come up with all sorts of rationalizations or decisions about "what it meant to them", good adaptations and bad ones. Let them do it, perhaps with a little less judgement. Be humble instead. Nobody completely has it all figured out.