Comments on: Cowell Has No Plans To Freeze Head http://www.nickharkaway.com/2009/03/cowell-has-no-plans-to-freeze-head/ Website and blog of Nick Harkaway, author of “The Gone-Away World”. Mon, 08 Mar 2010 22:21:10 -0800 hourly 1 By: The Genesis of Elves « shattersnipe: malcontent & rainbows http://www.nickharkaway.com/2009/03/cowell-has-no-plans-to-freeze-head/comment-page-1/#comment-235 The Genesis of Elves « shattersnipe: malcontent & rainbows Thu, 05 Mar 2009 01:13:25 +0000 http://www.nickharkaway.com/?p=1351#comment-235 [...] things, this makes me slightly crazy. But I’ve come up with a theory. And now, rejuvinated by the illustrious Harkaway’s recent musings on cryonics, I’m ready to show and tell. Or maybe just tell, in this case. [...] [...] things, this makes me slightly crazy. But I’ve come up with a theory. And now, rejuvinated by the illustrious Harkaway’s recent musings on cryonics, I’m ready to show and tell. Or maybe just tell, in this case. [...]

]]> By: Nick Harkaway http://www.nickharkaway.com/2009/03/cowell-has-no-plans-to-freeze-head/comment-page-1/#comment-219 Nick Harkaway Tue, 03 Mar 2009 09:01:07 +0000 http://www.nickharkaway.com/?p=1351#comment-219 Foz - I absolutely agree about long-term consequences. I have this faint hope that people would have to adjust to making decent decisions when they knew they were going to be around to see the outcomes. At the moment, you have to have a generational planning horizon, and people are not encouraged to think dynastically - inheritance is a notion with many perceived evils wrapped up in it: notions of class and of (deep breath) heteropatriarchy... Also: Elves? Hoooboy... *grin* Matt H - I don't think it's so much a case of 'deserve'. I think people just want to live. And to be honest, while I know people really go for M. Night, I don't love his movies enough that I'm prepared to die to find out about the ending... Also: 'extracting some brains'? We're talking about Zombie Hair now? Zomg. And: the inadvertent poetry of Captcha is wonderful, isn't it? I had "miserable archive" and "Muttering houses" last week. Foz – I absolutely agree about long-term consequences. I have this faint hope that people would have to adjust to making decent decisions when they knew they were going to be around to see the outcomes. At the moment, you have to have a generational planning horizon, and people are not encouraged to think dynastically – inheritance is a notion with many perceived evils wrapped up in it: notions of class and of (deep breath) heteropatriarchy…

Also: Elves? Hoooboy… *grin*

Matt H – I don’t think it’s so much a case of ‘deserve’. I think people just want to live. And to be honest, while I know people really go for M. Night, I don’t love his movies enough that I’m prepared to die to find out about the ending…

Also: ‘extracting some brains’? We’re talking about Zombie Hair now? Zomg.

And: the inadvertent poetry of Captcha is wonderful, isn’t it? I had “miserable archive” and “Muttering houses” last week.

]]> By: Matt H http://www.nickharkaway.com/2009/03/cowell-has-no-plans-to-freeze-head/comment-page-1/#comment-218 Matt H Tue, 03 Mar 2009 08:28:59 +0000 http://www.nickharkaway.com/?p=1351#comment-218 It is interesting that some people see themselves as worthy of living into the future. I say worthy... what I mean is that they see themselves as an example of the human race that deserves more than death. Personally, I am quite curious to see the bits that happen after you die. Cryonics are like renting an M. Night Shamalamalon movie and getting someone to press "pause" and restart the movie the moment before the big twist. Back to the topic of worthiness, perhaps the general public could vote on who gets to be 'the frozen one', perhaps via an online slash texting slash calling-up-and-pressing-a-code voting system that charges $0.99 per vote. [That's why the elves live forever, they are all the popular types, with hair so long that it must be extracting some brains. But we can forgive that because of the prettiness... I'm looking at you, Hugo Weaving.] (I would also like to point out the secret code I have to type in the box below in order to post this is "Weiner 8.0") It is interesting that some people see themselves as worthy of living into the future.
I say worthy… what I mean is that they see themselves as an example of the human race that deserves more than death.

Personally, I am quite curious to see the bits that happen after you die. Cryonics are like renting an M. Night Shamalamalon movie and getting someone to press “pause” and restart the movie the moment before the big twist.

Back to the topic of worthiness, perhaps the general public could vote on who gets to be ‘the frozen one’, perhaps via an online slash texting slash calling-up-and-pressing-a-code voting system that charges $0.99 per vote.

[That's why the elves live forever, they are all the popular types, with hair so long that it must be extracting some brains. But we can forgive that because of the prettiness... I'm looking at you, Hugo Weaving.]

(I would also like to point out the secret code I have to type in the box below in order to post this is “Weiner 8.0″)

]]> By: Foz Meadows http://www.nickharkaway.com/2009/03/cowell-has-no-plans-to-freeze-head/comment-page-1/#comment-216 Foz Meadows Mon, 02 Mar 2009 22:44:40 +0000 http://www.nickharkaway.com/?p=1351#comment-216 There's a fantastic SF book by Scott Westerfeld called The Risen Empire, the premise of which is (naturally) a world-spanning empire in which the Emperor has effectively cured death. The Risen Dead are honoured; the Emperor decides who (usually members of the military, politicians and so on) receives his miracle cure post-mortem, and there is a great political schism between the Greys (pro-restoration) and the Pinks (pro-death). Our main character is a military man, a pro-Grey but living war hero, who encounters a young Pink (female) senator at a fancy gala. He asks her why she believes in death. She points to their great space-based world, and asks if he's ever heard of Gallileo, who first came up with the correct view of the solar system. She also points out that Gallileo was opposed in his own time by the leading establishment. Thw war hero asks what happened to them. And the senator says, 'They died.' The book ultimately argues that death is important for ideas, because the people who held the original ones eventually die, vacate the seat of power and leave it for new generations to disagree, or agree, as they see fit. Very cool. On the other hand, I dearly would love to see human beings reach a long enough average lifespan to be forced to live with the long-term consequences of our actions. Part of the big problem with exploiting resources and with governments aiming only for one more term means that when the excrement hits the rotating thing, they're usually dead, or retired, or so far out of the public eye that people have forgotten they contributed to the present mess. If we lived longer, we'd have to plan longer. (Plus, you know, we'd eventually become elves. Effectively. I have a whole theory about this. And way too much time on my hands.) There’s a fantastic SF book by Scott Westerfeld called The Risen Empire, the premise of which is (naturally) a world-spanning empire in which the Emperor has effectively cured death. The Risen Dead are honoured; the Emperor decides who (usually members of the military, politicians and so on) receives his miracle cure post-mortem, and there is a great political schism between the Greys (pro-restoration) and the Pinks (pro-death). Our main character is a military man, a pro-Grey but living war hero, who encounters a young Pink (female) senator at a fancy gala. He asks her why she believes in death. She points to their great space-based world, and asks if he’s ever heard of Gallileo, who first came up with the correct view of the solar system. She also points out that Gallileo was opposed in his own time by the leading establishment. Thw war hero asks what happened to them. And the senator says, ‘They died.’ The book ultimately argues that death is important for ideas, because the people who held the original ones eventually die, vacate the seat of power and leave it for new generations to disagree, or agree, as they see fit. Very cool.

On the other hand, I dearly would love to see human beings reach a long enough average lifespan to be forced to live with the long-term consequences of our actions. Part of the big problem with exploiting resources and with governments aiming only for one more term means that when the excrement hits the rotating thing, they’re usually dead, or retired, or so far out of the public eye that people have forgotten they contributed to the present mess. If we lived longer, we’d have to plan longer.

(Plus, you know, we’d eventually become elves. Effectively. I have a whole theory about this. And way too much time on my hands.)

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