From: Corwyn J. Alambar (nettiger@best.com)
Date: Mon Sep 25 2000 - 21:47:02 MDT
How to bring up this point? I know I'm not the only one to wonder this, but
here goes...
Is the core idea of Extropy (as I understand it, summarized by "Upward and
Outward") predicated on a libertarian philosophy? Does one have to accept
all the other excess baggage that comes with libertarianism (i.e. absolute
freedom to own and use firearms, no centralized legal systems, decentralized
or no environmental regulations, no public investment from non-private
organizations, etc.) to be a true extropian?
I ask this question as a believer in the concepts of expanding beyond what
are accepted as "common" limitations - overcoming such barriers as aging
pathologies and death, limitations of the physical body (strength, endurance,
etc.), limitations of input bandwidth and storage, gravity wells, the speed of
light... All of these things that we can and SHOULD overcome.
I do not, and cannot, accept the fundamental assumptions that seem to underly
libertarianism - the axioms, often implicit, are ones I cannot accept, just
as I cannot accept the axioms that underly Christianity or Scientology. I
can accept an dsympathize with many of the ideas underlying the political
philosophy, and am at least friendly to most. My issues are those of
implementation - the practical questions that need to be answered before a
political philosophy becomes a political system. That having been said,
I need to ask this in plain language:
Is everyone out there on this list a libertarian, or is that just the air this
list puts forward? Because if that's the cost of entry... I don't know if I
can continue to provide constructive input into a discussion where I don't
buy into the same basic assumptions.
-Corey
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