Reproducing a Better Humanity (Video)

As one half of a married couple, who has reconciled himself to the fact of his own genetic extinction, “Voluntary Human Extinction Movement (VHEMT)” is perhaps the most unfortunate name for a social movement I’ve ever come across.

OTOH, I like Mike Treder’s distinction between mimetic and sexual reproduction.

Is there any hope that we might somehow actually become better residents of Earth and nicer neighbors to the millions of other species around us? Can we perhaps look toward a future where a healthy environment (however we define it) has been restored, where we live in equilibrium with our resources and within our ecosystem, and where we are making a net-positive impact, or at least no longer a net-negative one?

If that is indeed a possibility, it seems it will require the safe development and wise use of emerging technologies. It might even entail the gradual conversion of humans into something different, something improved, a step that transcends our naturally evolved state and transforms us into higher level beings.

Just as Darwin was inspired by the examples of directed evolution he and his English neighbors practiced in their fields and stables, humans taking the responsibility to engineer a new humanity is not outlandish. Besides, I don’t see that any earthly species could do better than humanity stewarding the planet, and would likely commit the same error. Unless, that is, humanity or a future species changes its own habits and society. But, again, talking about extinction, even for a so-called positive goal, is so ugly a concept for most people I don’t even think it worth trying to advertise. Parents I believe could join childless couples in the project to create a better society of better people. That unfortunate term risks dividing people into the orthodox and erring. And, both groups could inform each other as they both strove to better the next generation.

No, I don’t want to kill humanity. I want to fulfill its promise.

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Filed under: bhtv, Population Tagged: evolution, mike treder, mimetic reproduction, nina paley, vhemt, voluntary human extinction movement