RE: SARS - the extropian virus

From: Emlyn O'regan (oregan.emlyn@healthsolve.com.au)
Date: Thu Mar 27 2003 - 22:05:08 MST

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    I don't agree with this analysis.

    > There is a sense in which these super-viri and any medical,
    > environmental or
    > other crisis are extropian. Crisis of this sort will require 2 key
    > components of successful extropian futures - international
    > coordination and
    > advanced technological response.

    Some extropians will not agree that international coordination is necessary
    (or desirable) to extropianism.

    > If SARS turns out to be a worldwide
    > epidemic it unlikely that most of the world will accept it as
    > a message from
    > god for people to succumb to death. Instead people will ask
    > for a cure and
    > as we well know a cure will likely come by way of new medical
    > technologies.
    > If the cure makes use of new controversial approaches the
    > result may well be
    > the mainstreaming and acceptance of the new techniques that
    > Kass and others
    > decry. The international cooperation aspects also critical
    > as we begin,
    > what may well be, a new era of global problems that need to
    > be approached
    > from a global multilateral perspective.
    >
    > Chris

    This could be the outcome. Or, a really bad disease outbreak might lead to a
    global paranoia about spread of disease, and resulting major damage to
    international travel, tourism, and trade. It is likely to reinforce the
    isolationist tendencies building up now in response to the fear campaigns of
    certain world leaders who shall remain nameless, a direction which is highly
    unextropic imo.

    The new stem-cell/cloning related techniques are in a race to bring out
    something spectacular before the naysayers close too many doors. If you want
    something to shake the average westerner by the collar and yell at them
    "Modern microbiological medical techniques are GOOD", it's stuff like the
    cancer cure that Geron seems to be well on the way towards. If they can come
    out and say "Now we have a real, across the board cure for cancer", the
    boomers *will* sit up and listen. All questions about aborted foetal
    material will be forgotten; I personally don't think they'd care if it was
    made out of third world children's livers. Never underestimated the power of
    unenlightened self interest.

    But fear of bad people is an even stronger motivator than selfish gain, it
    appears. SARS would be seen as a plague brought in by foreigners. Not good.

    Emlyn

    "Of course the people don't want war. But after all, it's the leaders of the
    country who determine the policy, and it's always a simple matter to drag
    the people along whether it's a democracy, a fascist dictatorship, or a
    parliament, or a communist dictatorship. Voice or no voice, the people can
    always be brought to the bidding of the leaders. That is easy. All you have
    to do is tell them they are being attacked, and denounce the pacifists for
    lack of patriotism, and exposing the country to greater danger. It works the
    same way in any country."
    -- Herman Goering at the Nuremberg trials
    (http://www.snopes.com/quotes/goering.htm)

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