From: the animated silicon love doll (cheshire@velvet.net)
Date: Wed Mar 06 2002 - 04:45:25 MST
2002.03.04 00:38:35, Eugene Leitl <Eugene.Leitl@lrz.uni-muenchen.de> wrote:
>I never use those when talking to the mundanes. I used to use "transhuman"
>a bit, but lately realized it's not a good idea. Just throwing interesting
>concepts around is sufficient, and then, after a while you can mention
>there's a group of people who's pursuing similiar interests. Anything else
>comes over as cultism/preaching, and people are wired to shun that.
I've found myself in the same situation wrt being transgendered.
However, I'd hardly consider you (or anyone on this list) a "mundane".
>Right, and since we're not that, let's keep to vanilla language, with a
>bit of jargon from science & technology. It's totally up to the task.
I'd rather not limit myself to scientific and technical jargon - if some
other jargon is called for, I'll use it.
>I would like to see evidence for change, given that sex is wired in the
>brain, and we understand the brain a lot less then gender, and can change
>it even less. Hormones do something, but it's not enough. And why should
>this interest me, at all? Postbiology doesn't have to have a sexual
>dimorphism, or at least this particular sexual dimorphism. Talking about
>gender is about the same relevance to transhumanism as human genetic
>engineering. I.e. very little to none.
Personally, I think that the binary gender system is one of the things that
will quickly be left behind when people start to become non-biological (ie,
uploads), so I'd say that gender discussions can be relevant. But that's
me.
In the end, I think g-neutral pronouns are an issue of respect. Do you
respect me (or anyone else) enough, as a fellow Extropian and human being,
to use the proper pronoun? You're perfectly welcome not to, though I'd
probably start referring to you with g-neutral or female pronouns (yes, I'm
vindictive, why do you ask?).
>Sometime gender can be ignored, sometimes its use conveys valuable
>information.
So let's ignore it when it can be ignored, and make not of it when that
information is valuable.
cheshire morgan. Advance and never halt, for advancing is perfection.
Advance and do not fear the thorns in the path,
for they draw only corrupt blood.
-Kahlil Gibran
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