-----Original Message----- From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Bruce Kellett Sent: Sunday, December 21, 2014 3:27 PM To: [email protected] Subject: Re: I signed up to be cryogenically frozen
John Clark wrote: > On Sun, Dec 21, 2014 , Bruce Kellett <[email protected]> wrote: > > >An instinct for self-preservation is unrelated to whether or not > you have a fear of death, or of oblivion > > Unrelated?? Don't be ridiculous! Why the hell do you imagine Evolution > invented the fear of death in the first place? >>Evolution did not "invent a fear of death". That is purely cultural, and is >>not even associated with consciousness -- it comes only with self-awareness >>and an inner narrative. Evolution gave living things an instinct for >>self-preservation. But you can have such an instinct operating healthily and >>still not fear death. Fear of death probably comes from a fear of the >>unknown, and is linked to the fear of prolonged suffering. But oblivion is >>oblivion -- it is not something to be feared because no-one has ever >>experienced it, or can ever experience it. Fear itself (for species that experience this sensation) can become an evolutionary dead end... a paralyzing negative force that diminishes rather than improves an individual organisms chances for survival. The fear of death is often an example of this kind of paralyzing useless fear, providing no evolutionary advantage. It is unlike say the -- fear/memory -- of something hot, the fear being the useful quick shortcut to the executive mind of the memory of past bad experiences with being burned by hot things. This is a useful rapid shortcut to the forebrain that is clearly useful in evolutionary terms. Fear can either help the individual to act quickly or it can paralyze the individual; while a healthy fear can deliver a lightening quick (possibly life-preserving) alert to the conscious mind, paralyzing fear instead, is of no use for an individual's survival, and can often be a distinct evolutionary disadvantage. When someone is paralyzed with fear, they are worse than useless, in a critical life and death situation. -Chris Bruce -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Everything List" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/everything-list. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Everything List" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/everything-list. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
