> > how do the Extropians reconcile the "open borders" philosophy
> > advocated by Extropians, with the fact that most American citizens
> > oppose open borders
If open borders truly benefit American citizens, then it's just a matter of
educating American citizens about these benefits, thus overcoming opposition.
If, however, those who oppose open borders show how open borders cause more
harm than good, then they should prevail. From the standpoint of extropian
implications of border control, I think "good fences make good neighbors" and
the arguments in favor of strong borders seem to have prevailed.
Entropy occurs when the borders between different energy levels are removed.
Applying this to cultural and social situations may not always be apropos, but
the principle is the same. The issue of personal freedom and how this is
supposedly infringed by controlled borders is irrelevant when such freedom
results in anti-extropy.
From: "Harvey Newstrom" <mail@HarveyNewstrom.com>
> When
> we go into space, undersea, underground, or into the far future, these
> current borders will no longer constrain us.
Borders are not the same as constraints. Just as our skin helps to keep us
healthy (and extropic) by preventing microbial invasions, so national borders
help to keep us healthy by preventing terrorist (and entropic) invasions. As
our social order moves into new, and often chaotic environments, it needs
strong borders to preserve its internal extropian principles.
--- --- --- --- ---
Useless hypotheses, etc.:
consciousness, phlogiston, philosophy, vitalism, mind, free will, qualia,
analog computing, cultural relativism, GAC, Cyc, Eliza, cryonics, individual
uniqueness, ego, human values, scientific relinquishment, malevolent AI,
non-sensory experience, SETI
We move into a better future in proportion as science displaces superstition.
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b30 : Sat May 11 2002 - 17:44:33 MDT