From: john grigg (starman125@hotmail.com)
Date: Tue May 02 2000 - 01:45:01 MDT
Hal Finney wrote:
Predation is a hard problem to solve honorably for all parties concerned,
but I think it is worth trying. Every day, billions of animals die in
suffering and pain as their desperate struggles to escape a predator fail.
Nature is screwed up. It's a bloodthirsty, vicious world. We should be able
to do better.
(end)
According to the theory of evolution, this is part of the process that
maintains the survival of the fittest engine. Is it really screwed up? Is
this simply a matter of perspective? lol But then it could be argued that
pain, disease and early death are 'natural' and yet we don't want it to be
that way. Considering the mindboggling ways extropians would like to
reengineer the universe, I consider this idea not so outrageous at all.
At this point in human history your idea does seem proposterous. But a
century from now in the utopia that might be, these ideas may appear not
only sensible but a "moral call to action."
Creating "stasis" in the food chain would be quite an accomplishment! So
genetic engineering would make all predators(including insect and arachnid)
vegetarian? It would be like the descriptions in the Bible of the
millennial reign of Christ where the "lion lies down with the lamb," and
doesn't feel like eating him!
In terms of humanity "neutering" mother nature, I thought with mature
nanotech immune systems in our bodies, we could basically ignore whatever
vicious killer virus or bacterium the biosphere produced. Because they would
stand no chance against our artificially enhanced armamentarium. Or could
nature find a way around even that??
Michael Lorry wrote:
As I've said before here, when people started talking about having skin of
solar cells to eliminate the need to eat, that I expect when such people are
created that they'll pretty quickly form a PETOP, the People for the Ethical
Treatment Of Plants. They'll call vegetarians inhumane butchers and
disgusting bloodthirsty immoral barbarians. But thats only because they are
now thinking like plants....
(end)
Let's go one step farther.... With people using anti-bacterial cleansers
everyday, literally trillions of microorganisms are being slaughtered every
minute!! Something must be done! Stop disinfecting your home! Don't touch
that antibiotic! And don't take any more showers! Even the tiny germ needs
our love. ;)
hehehe,
John
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