From: Greg Burch (gregburch@gregburch.net)
Date: Fri Jul 12 2002 - 06:34:27 MDT
I know Lee's message was supposed to be off-list, but 1) Max has the
courage of his convictions when it comes to self-improvement (no one
with biceps like that isn't able to take a little pain in order to get
some gain) and 2) it's worth talking about the best way to present our
ideas.
No matter how good someone is at public persuasion, it takes constant
work to keep those skills honed and one can always improve. As it
happens, we've got folks with a good deal of experience in public
speaking (including Max, Natasha, myself, Tom Bell and the other lawyers
in the group), and it might be a good idea to have another workshop on
the subject at Extro6 or another transhumanist gathering.
One thing to keep in mind: It's important to be able to do a good job
even when conditions are "suboptimal," as they were for Max on CNN. In
this regard, there's no substitute for practice, practice, practice, so
that habit and training can kick in when the chips are down. In this
regard, I remember asking Charles Alan Wright -- a name the lawyers on
the list will know well <*> -- when he stopped being nervous when he
made presentations in court. His answer: "Never." Fortunately, Wright
then took the time to offer me some tips for dealing with this, which
have stood me in very good stead over the years and which I'd love to
share with those who may find themselves in the position of public
spokesperson for our ideas.
<*> Wright was Nixon's lawyer in the "Tapes case" (among other famous
and infamous cases) and was the author of the still-leading references
work for litigators on procedure in federal court -- my Bible.
Greg Burch
Vice-President, Extropy Institute
http://www.gregburch.net
> -----Original Message-----
> [mailto:owner-extropians@extropy.org] On Behalf Of Lee Corbin
> Sent: Friday, July 12, 2002 12:36 AM
>
>
> Hi Max,
>
> I did see your television appearance, and did *not*
> read the transcript. You spoke way too fast, so
> that even I, enormously sympathetic, and familiar
> with the ideas, couldn't follow you.
>
> I hope that this is old news to you by now, especially
> after having studied your taped performance.
>
> Evidently it's true that slow, logical, idealistic
> statements---which come naturally to us pro-lifers--- have
> the greatest positive impact, I would think.
>
> Best regards and good luck,
>
> Lee
>
> P.S. You certainly did *not* lose the "debate", at least.
>
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