Is the future Transhuman Financial Slavery?

Hello to my ATS family,

What would you be willing to do, to extend your life? Replace your heart, your liver, perhaps even your spine, maybe a majority of your organs?

Perhaps a prescription, a very expensive one, for the rest of your "life", something like Neuropozyne to maintain the replaced organs?

Perhaps you'd pay a monthly bill, like your electric bill, your car payment, or your mortgage?

What if you couldn't afford such a payment? You lost your job, or your spouse is suddenly ill and you cannot afford it? Would we face something like (Graphic warning for gore, and blood) Repo Men coming to "reclaim" your organ for non-payment?

At what COST can you see this at, a $100 a month? $200 a month? How about $497? As much as the average Mortgage $900 a month?

Yes, both of the above links are works of fiction. The Deus Ex Series of games, and Repo Men (IMDB) are both works of fiction. They both tell of a fictional world where we are slaves to drugs, or money. Either way, slaves none the less to something besides our own destinies.

Where am I going, you ask?

So, we've all seen the news about "printing blood cells" and growing livers in labs, we've seen the beginning of Bio-mods as well, the contact lens for monitoring glucose (blood sugar) in diabetics.

Now, here is where it gets scary, aside NSA monitoring in such devices, and the creepy "kill switch" that "possibly" could exist in such devices, like artificial hearts, and such. But that is not where I am wanting to take this thread. So let's leave that out for the time being, because as scary as it is, there are bigger fish to bring to the surface.

Many people are starting to veer away from medications. People are finding them less effective, and to many side effects. The health system going down the drain; how long will it be before some Big Pharma company decides to switch to Bio-mod organs. How long before the new "revolving revenue" system is implemented. Unlike meds, which in many cases, can be skipped, or not taken at all. (excluding such major issues as diabetes, and such). How do you skip making a "Monthly organ payment" or "expensive drug payment" to keep living?

To me, this would be the ultimate lynch-pin to several big-time goals. Controlling population You can afford the bio-mod, but can't afford the monthly payments. Controlling the people, via all info being centralized. Health, criminal, financial records all in one place, who is going to give you a bio-mod heart or kidney so you can keep living if your credit is bad? How about simply ensuring your a slave, longer life, no "sick time" as you can't afford it, and you can't stop working.

I see this becoming a reality, in the not too distant future. That is, if we all don't blow each other up in some major war.

So tell me, ATS friends, do you think corporations, big pharma, and our "government" would conspire to make such a scary future a reality?

I can see it, I can see it as one huge, ugly, but "for humanity" method of ultimate control, because no one wants to die.

I am not against bio-mods, and replacing failing organs. I myself would take a pancreas to correct my type 1 diabetes I've had for 29 years. I would replace my eyes too, as I've always had horrible vision. But I can't see doing it at such a cost. I can't see being "fixed" to be a slave for the rest of my life.

What are your thoughts?

Here is an interesting video that talks about it as well, it's an interesting, but lengthy view.



Thank you for reading. I hope you enjoyed the thread.

We are slaves the minute we are born...it never ended just got repackaged.
I can see this also happening and as usual the rich will be able to afford it and the poor will not...pity I will never be rich because I would also go for it all, I want cyberlimbs like the 6 million dollar man.
I think it will change what being human is all about imagine If you could live for a thousand years with all your faculties working right, It will change us spiritually, physically and socially, we may start to care more because we live longer on this planet.
So it is a double edged sword really but one I want to try out.
Great thread btw s%F.

BTW have you watched in time? great watch and backs up your OP in what may happen.

boymonkey74
We are slaves the minute we are born...it never ended just got repackaged.
I can see this also happening and as usual the rich will be able to afford it and the poor will not...pity I will never be rich because I would also go for it all, I want cyberlimbs like the 6 million dollar man.
I think it will change what being human is all about imagine If you could live for a thousand years with all your faculties working right, It will change us spiritually, physically and socially, we may start to care more because we live longer on this planet.
So it is a double edged sword really but one I want to try out.
Great thread btw s%F.

Oh, don't get me wrong, I would love to live for a long, long time. I might actually get all my little projects done, then too. LOL

Yes we are slaves, but it's possible, presently, to unplug from most of it, if not all of it. But when your LIFE hangs on by a "device" that can be taken from you, or fail in time due to lack of proper "meds", that would be the ultimate "They've got you by the short-hairs!". At least, in my humble opinion.

LOL @ 6 million dollar man.. Nice reference.. In the movie I used in my OP, a liver was $756,000.

reply to post by Cygnis


Yeah I have seen it and yes that will happen, In time is also a similar movie where you stay at the age of 25 forever but have a clock running down and if it hits 0:00 you die, the currency is time people pay for things and get payed in actual living time.
Worth a watch If you have not seen it.

reply to post by Cygnis


I don't have time to watch your video but will later.

The idea of getting out of debt by having your organs 'confiscated' is truly a thing of futuristic horror. Just the concept alone disgusts me and I can't imagine the 'my body is a temple brigade's' reaction to this scenario.

What frightens me is that with the greed and the elite unpunished out there and and doing exactly whatever they please with the establishment protecting them and forcing their desires through, what you suggest is not beyond the realms of possibility. I imagine it will be an issue like this that will eventually make mankind decide enough is enough of the current elite and their greed and control of the masses. However this scednario could be blown out the water simply by our learning how to grow organs etc that need to be replaced from our own stem-cells or the making of artificial non-rejectiontype organs.

boymonkey74
reply to post by Cygnis

 

Yeah I have seen it and yes that will happen, In time is also a similar movie where you stay at the age of 25 forever but have a clock running down and if it hits 0:00 you die, the currency is time people pay for things and get payed in actual living time.
Worth a watch If you have not seen it.

Indeed, which movie is this you speak of. It does sound interesting.

You didn't give me a name, ya turkey!

Shiloh7
reply to post by Cygnis

 

I don't have time to watch your video but will later.

The idea of getting out of debt by having your organs 'confiscated' is truly a thing of futuristic horror. Just the concept alone disgusts me and I can't imagine the 'my body is a temple brigade's' reaction to this scenario.

What frightens me is that with the greed and the elite unpunished out there and and doing exactly whatever they please with the establishment protecting them and forcing their desires through, what you suggest is not beyond the realms of possibility. I imagine it will be an issue like this that will eventually make mankind decide enough is enough of the current elite and their greed and control of the masses. However this scednario could be blown out the water simply by our learning how to grow organs etc that need to be replaced from our own stem-cells or the making of artificial non-rejectiontype organs.

Thats ok about the video, it's certainly interesting, but I understand time constraints for most people.

Indeed, most people could not envision being in such a situation, but given bad or hastey circumstances, and people's lack of reading fine print, as well as proper "spin" any "horror scenario" can easily be made to sound like a bed of roses.

Again, with proper propaganda, it could be spun in such a way to be a "good thing" or in an a more horrid future, what if corporations were the ones running the show, and government was in the back seat, (wait isn't that how it is presently. forgive me I digress). But, to a much more serious extend then it is presently? /shudder

In the Deus Ex series, corporations ARE the government. Thats the creepy part there.

I think it's a possibility. "For evil men to succeed, good men need not do anything". or something like that, is how the saying goes.

Can you imagine giving people a cure to ageing or even giving them immortality ? All the power hungry and rich would be able to buy it and be able to extend their power through time. They could cause wars that last centuries or seize control of the worlds natural resources and hold everybody at ransom, forcing a scenario where the lower and middle classes could be used as practically slave labour. There are far more terrifying options than this but there are a few more desirable possibilities like world peace etc.

There are always risks. You have to ask yourself whether the negative outweighs the positive.

boymonkey74
reply to post by Cygnis

 

Yeah I have seen it and yes that will happen, In time is also a similar movie where you stay at the age of 25 forever but have a clock running down and if it hits 0:00 you die, the currency is time people pay for things and get payed in actual living time.
Worth a watch If you have not seen it.

Ahh I found it..

In Time

is this what you were referring to, Boymonkey74?

reply to post by Cygnis


I did its called in time lol

blueyezblkdragon
Can you imagine giving people a cure to ageing or even giving them immortality ? All the power hungry and rich would be able to buy it and be able to extend their power through time. They could cause wars that last centuries or seize control of the worlds natural resources and hold everybody at ransom, forcing a scenario where the lower and middle classes could be used as practically slave labour. There are far more terrifying options than this but there are a few more desirable possibilities like world peace etc.

There are always risks. You have to ask yourself whether the negative outweighs the positive.

Indeed, you bring up good points, Dragon. That is also a creepy idea.. Imagine congressmen and women being voted into office for hundreds of years, and the iphone 200s.

If things were done with benevolent purpose, and KEPT that way, we could progress at such an amazing rate.. We'd be traveling the stars in 20 years. and LIVE to see them all..

boymonkey74
reply to post by Cygnis

 

I did its called in time lol

I see that now, I didn't realize that was the title of the movie. LOL..

Thanks for confirming, tho, BM.

I hope it never gets to the extreme of near immortality. Can you imagine the implications...

At what point would "human rights" no longer apply to these cyborgs? Surely there would begin to be discrimination against these human/cyborgs. Of course the rich wouldn't care too much. If it became affordable and popular then discrimination against the 100%rs...
LOL new term... the 100%rs. all natural humans

I can see Dating sites for 100% natural humans only lol....
Only the super rich could afford it, even if the payments for these life extending pieces was 100-200 a month, imagine what insurance companies going to say about insuring someone 200 years old lol...

reply to post by Cygnis


I don't like this way of thinking, I find it is very materialist and it will ensue problems like we are seeing with GMO foods. The video is extremist, it only displays one side of the story; that we will achieve this trans-humanistic stage and be something better and nothing else will happen. These scientist fail to ask any real questions, however the OP does, but the video with those actually trying to materialize these concepts don't.

The scientists speaking in the video are no different than a slick salesman trying to sell you a dream. Giving only the plus and are ignoring the unwanted consequences, kind of like we are experiencing now with so many of our "other advancements". What are those advancements I speak of? Fukushima, HARRP, creation of man made chemical compounds, weapons of mass destruction, gene manipulation in food in animal, the new way of "curing" things and making other peoples wallets bigger, TV, weather manipulation to name of few. Reminds me of the new spider-man movie with the crazy lizard scientist who just has to cure humanity (actually a small portion of humanity as most of humanity is fine) with his nightmare ideas.

We are sounding alarms because we are quickly reaching 8 billion in population and these wackos want to extend human life up to 1000 years. For what? So we can work harder and longer, be like robots? No, in the video they speak of robots who will do all that, robots that could learn how to destroy us, but that is just not discussed in the video. We need funds!

Guess who will live that long? Who will have the brain boost? They will give everybody an equal chance right? Kind of like now.

They are selling us a dream. Lucifer is trying to destroy Gods creation, deceiving us with his LIES. Sorry that is just what I see.

I have always liked the idea of trans humanism extending life indefinitely. I am new here to ATS, and am really liking all the interesting topics. The future of medicine is both exciting, and scary. Hopefully we as a species get our act together before such technology comes into existence.

I think mortality is a good thing. I would be sad in a world where all of my brothers, sisters, cousins were all dead and I was alive.
Even if life could be extended for all of us it wouldn't be the same. You could become young again in your body but the mind would still be old.

I think one of the greatest things in life is the fact that it is finite. That it will end. That what I am experiencing is special(to me).

Who knows though, I imagine I'd see things differently if I was in constant pain etc. Check back in 20 years.

Also I think the future will not be slavery.

I think if time went on long enough for humans to live forever what would happen is that humans would crave to break the system.

I think the free market is something that is natural to human beings, like taking a piss. The farther away from it we become the more humans will work to get it back. Either peacefully or violently.

reply to post by bitsforbytes


Yes, in some instances, "just because we can do it" does not mean we SHOULD do it.

Granted, for those who are in genuine NEED of "new parts", I think should get the option. Just because you can AFFORD to get all your parts changed out like a ford engine, does not mean you need them.

As I said, I would be in the market for new eyes, and a new pancreas. Everything else is running just fine.

Greed will be our undoing.

OrphanApology
I think mortality is a good thing. I would be sad in a world where all of my brothers, sisters, cousins were all dead and I was alive.
Even if life could be extended for all of us it wouldn't be the same. You could become young again in your body but the mind would still be old.

I think one of the greatest things in life is the fact that it is finite. That it will end. That what I am experiencing is special(to me).

Who knows though, I imagine I'd see things differently if I was in constant pain etc. Check back in 20 years.

Also I think the future will not be slavery.

I think if time went on long enough for humans to live forever what would happen is that humans would crave to break the system.

I think the free market is something that is natural to human beings, like taking a piss. The farther away from it we become the more humans will work to get it back. Either peacefully or violently.

edit on 19-1-2014 by OrphanApology because: D

I understand your view-point, and I suppose there would come a time where you are just "done" with it all, and the end being near would be a relief.

See, from my perspective, there are soooo many amazing things happening, true, there are also a lot of TERRIFYING things happening as well. But for the most part, there is always something fascinating on the horizon, something new, and amazing that can change the world, if it is used for benevolent purposes.

I would be interested in living longer, granted, I am not sure of wanting to live a thousand years, a few hundred, could be entertaining.

But, my perspective is always coming from one who is not physically 100% like most people are. So, the idea of living longer is like the holy grail for those in poor health, or a genetic defect.

I know it's totally off my rocker to say this, but it would be nice to see greed dropped, and humanity pushed in a healthy direction for once.