premjan

no cheating, but it isn't hard to figure out what kind of response will get a good score.

LivingDead

Instinct and peer pressure.

"Sin" is an invalid concept in the transtopian context. Instead, I'd call it "original imperfection". The flesh is inherently weak, limited, and flawed, and must be transcended by means of rationally applied technologies. Only when the mind is freed from its stifling, doomed fleshy prison can it hope to achieve its full -godlike- potential among the stars.

Think harder...

Actually, it is mostly based on such interaction. I've experienced human stupidity firsthand time & again. Haven't we all, Mr. oppressed atheist minority? Mind you, I don't actively loathe them, most of the time; it's more like a steady background hum. The world is a horrible mess (more than you can imagine, in fact), and "the people" are at least partially to blame for this. To quote Havelock Ellis: "It is the masses; the ignorant, emotional, volatile, superstitious masses; who rule the world. It is they who choose the few supreme persons who manage or mismanage the world's affairs. Even the most stupid of us must be able to see how it is done now, for during recent years the whole process has been displayed before us on the very largest scale."

LivingDead

I know, it's a very simple script... Doesn't exactly take rocket science to figure out how it works (in fact, it even says on the site "If you don't like cookies, just read the various statements, and if you generally agree you're probably enlightened, and if you don't you most certainly aren't. It's basically that simple", yet on every board or list there seems to be at least one individual who takes intense pride in having "cracked the code" and "cheated". For cryin' out loud... ).

The test will be upgraded, eventually. No more easy cheats.

0

This thread isn't really appropriate for GRD. Off to ~Elsewhere~ it goes.

Warning:
Let's also keep the discussion in this thread civil and refrain from using personal attacks, shall we?

Tangie

Dean Anderson

Well, I'm proud to say I got a 1. Good job too - I would hate to think people thought that I actually resembled the sort of people who wrote this 'agree with me or be insulted' test.

From what I can see on the test, my main disagreements are...

1) I approve of relatively unjudgemental altruism, rather than Eugenics and Social Darwinism.

2) I value the happiness brought by my wife and family more than the happiness brought by wealth and material goods (having been with and without both in the past).

3) I feel that survival at any cost is not the be-all and end-all of life. I would rather have 'three score and ten' years of happy life than three thousand and ten years of dull emotionless mere existence.

Matrioshka_Brain

I labled it crap because the test maker was racist, a bit confused [contradictory questions], and worst of all, full of themselves to an amazing and entierly unjustifiable extent.

The rating system. Most tests are not produced under the assumtion that a particular world view is necessarily the most "enlightened" one and others are nescessarily sheep. The ones that are are ususally puked out by fundamentalists or idealouges of various sorts, who aren't so much as concerned with the prusuit of truth or "enlightenment" as they are in themselves being right.

WTF? How is doing something you really like (at least with the proper protective methods) careless and/or impractical? Justify that statement; and reconcile it with the test's endosement of hedonism.

See, this is what I mean. "Close-minded chaff" = people who don't agree with me. I'm impressed, LivingDead. An utterly astonishing display of open-mindedness from none other than the "enlightened, progressive wheat" {translation: full of themself, intolerant and disrespectful ape} itself.

Well, it seems LivingDead is just so enlightened he knows what is objectively interesting. And guess what: It's what he finds interesting! Who could have guessed it?

This is really getting tiring. "...in the transtopian context;" full of themselves. The "transtopia" is not a relevant futurist movement, as for example the Extropians or Transhumanists. Nor should it be, you'd make us look bad [eugenics? the bell curve? constant carrying on about how you're so "enlightened" and eveyone else is sheep? no thank you.]

Now we're talking. For many if not most intents and purposes, yes, a flesh, especially a strictly flesh medium is very limiting and often subject to additional flaws and incompetencies, and people would do well to work together to make better options, and make them avalable to eveyone. We can do [more accurately, will be able to do] better than flesh.

Bear in mind that there are actually some really cool people out there. At least from my experience.

Bumble Bee Tuna

Just goes to show that even smart people can be dumb.

LivingDead

Not "racist", just racially realistic. Basically this means that one acknowledges that racial differences are real and sometimes quite significant, while also acknowledging that they merely represent averages, and that individual people should, whenever possible, be judged on their own merits. The test is pretty clear about this.

Examples? Surely you don't mean the "racism" bit?

Oh, the horror!

Well, that's your opinion. Personally, I don't think there's anything wrong with taking pride in being right "to an amazing extent". Any philosophy that includes cryonics, transhumanism, and singularitarianism is -almost by definition- pretty elite, but this one goes even further. Politics, ethics, economics...all from the same rational, empowering perspective. It was meant to be the "ultimate" holistic package deal, and that's exactly what it is (becoming). Again, by scoring a 3 you basically admit that yes, there's a lot of truth in these statements, so the sweeping "crap" label is totally unwarranted. To reject an entire philosophy simply because you happen to disagree with a few minor details (i.e. the supposed "racism" & "arrogance") isn't logical.

Well, this one is, and like I said it works just fine. Someone who totally disagrees with all or most of the statements is a couple short of his six-pack by just about anyone's standards, and someone who agrees must, almost by definition, be a pretty intelligent and interesting individual. Why is this so hard to accept / admit?

There are always exceptions to the rule, and this is one such exception. Reasonable views in a "hardcore", unapologetic, mock-cultish format. Refreshing, huh?

Even if you manage to avoid STDs and other diseases, sexual relationships can, and often will, cause severe emotional (and sometimes even legal or financial) problems. Love is insanity, and sex tends to bring out the worst in people. Jealousy, paranoia, possessiveness... A good hearty wank is hedonism too, and so much safer, cheaper, and generally more convenient. Intelligent hedonism, that's the name of the game. But hey, if regular sex works for you, fine. It's not a core principle or anything, just a (logical) derivative. Non-procreation is much more important.

Irrelevant. The only thing that matters it whether or not I'm right. If you think I'm blatantly wrong regarding any of the issues mentioned in the test, prove it.

Well, I know that the test is more interesting than some guy's (no, not you) knee-jerk 2-sentence response.

That happens to be the test's context, yes. Get over it. If we'd be discussing, say, buddhism, then it would be "in the buddhist context" etc.

Oh, right, they're so "relevant" they're even dwarfed by an obscure outfit like the WFS. If size (and funding etc.) is all that matters, we're all pretty much irrelevant. Small fish in a huge left, right & religion-dominated pond. If, OTOH, solid memeage is what really matters, then transtopianism can more than hold its own against its older, (slightly) larger siblings. Also, if nothing else, it introduces thousands of people to the transhumanist meme each year.

Transtopia has a lot more to offer than eugenics & the bell curve. Aren't you confusing it with Prometheism, by any chance? Re the "enlightenment" thing; yes, transtopians are rationally enlightened, and so are you to a certain extent ("borderline", as the test would say ). Why be falsely modest about it? After all, we're not really interested in wooing / recruiting the ignorant masses. Quality over quantity.

Yes, there are a few. Most of them have joined transtopia.org.

LivingDead

Who you callin' dumb, pardner?!

Btw, bumble bee tuna? WTF??

Sakpo

Well, if you agree with this site, I guess he's calling you dumb. I don't think the site shows any signs of intelligence, just a load of pompous racist nonsense.

Everyone should check out their "Non PC" section. It's full of endorsed links to... stormfront. Impressive!