mmm@cup.portal.com (08/23/89)
I have been informed by dedicated cryonicists that arrangements made through Alcor involve a little something called "the mummy's curse". This is a provision by which the money left for the maintenance of a cryonically- suspended body will be used to persecute the responsible parties, in the event the body is defrosted or otherwise rendered unusable for re-animation. By itself, this might seem reasonable enough. After all, a cryonicist would see this as an act equivalent to murder. But are there other implications here? Let's give the cryonicists credit for some brains. They're not just going to launch themselves into the future without making some serious preparations. For example, they will want their money to be managed intelligently, so that they will have a nice fortune to look forward to. And of course, there will be lots of fellow cryonicists engaged in a similar journey. They will obviously have parallel interests in promoting a reliable re-animation technology. But there will be other parallel interests. For example, they will have an interest in promoting law which protects the property rights of cryonically-suspended people. And preventing the defrosting/"murder" of said people. It seems logical that the cryonicists would have an agenda which goes beyond the mere security of their liquid nitrogen supply. They might have plans to send scouts into the future, to manage investments and in other ways protect the interests of their folk. What seems dangerous is the logical extension of this point of view. There may be a struggle between the living and the undead. The cryonicists will have enormous funds at their disposal. They will have the luxury of taking the "long view". They may meddle with the economy and even the politics of the living. They may even see their goal as some sort of cryonicist utopia. An utopia which might not include the non-cryonicists. For example, they might decide that there are too many people, that the population load is too much for the Earth. Even if nanotech provides unlimited resources, living people could be seen as a threat. They commit crimes; they have wars; the cryonicists might decide that a depopulated Earth would be the utopia for the cryonic population. They might set events in motion which would wipe out all or most of the living population, in order that the cryonicists would weather the crisis and return to a virgin Earth. My question is, is there a cryonics conspiracy? What sort of future are the cryonicists preparing? And is it too late for the rest of us to defend ourselves?
merkle.pa@xerox.com (09/08/89)
mmm@cup.portal.com in <8908230339.AA04755@athos.rutgers.edu> said: >the cryonicists might decide that a depopulated >Earth would be the utopia for the cryonic population. They might set events >in motion which would wipe out all or most of the living population, in order >that the cryonicists would weather the crisis and return to a virgin Earth. I suspect this person is not serious..... >I have been informed by dedicated cryonicists that arrangements made through >Alcor involve a little something called "the mummy's curse". This is a >provision by which the money left for the maintenance of a cryonically- >suspended body will be used to persecute the responsible parties, in the >event the body is defrosted or otherwise rendered unusable for re-animation. In case anyone believes this, I should point out that Alcor sells a booklet called "Signing Up Made Simple" (over 100 pages) for $10 (available from Alcor, 12327 Doherty St., Riverside, CA 92503) which has sample copies of all the legal documents required for suspension. No mention of "the mummy's curse," no mention of persecution, etc. The section covering what to do with the suspension funds if suspension is not possible basically provides three alternatives: (1) the money goes to Alcor, (2) the money goes to a beneficiary you designate or (3) attach a separate sheet detailing your wishes. Somehow, I think mmm@cup.portal.com is (to understate the case) biased. The information he provides on cryonics is certainly inaccurate and should be ignored. [I had assumed the original posting was primarily tongue-in-cheek... --JoSH]