Thank you so much for writing this. I’ve been saying this quietly more and more to my friends hopping on the Paleo bandwagon, and it has been hard getting anyone to listen terribly much.

Reasoning from evidence is the core of science. The evidence for Paleo pales in comparison for the evidence for the Mediterranean diet and variations on it. I can’t for the life of me understand how so many intelligent, thinking people have jumped off a cliff together. Perhaps it is some sort of herd mentality in action.

By contrast, Stalin appears to have been a “pure psychopath,” concerned only with his own survival, and it seems likely he would have been as at home in any ideological, political or social system which allowed him unfettered access to power the Mafia or the Soviet Union – either would have suited him just fine).

Similarly, all three men were responsible for millions of deaths as “collateral” to their central actions. The millions who died as an “indirect” result of Hitler’s actions in WWII, the millions who died in the de-kulakization of Ukraine, and the millions who died as a result of Mao’s decision making, from the Long March onward, might be viewed as “negligence.” Might be, but again, not by me. In terms of raw numbers of deaths, intended or otherwise, Mao was the clear leader, followed by Stalin, and then Hitler. Both men deliberately and knowingly condemned millions to death, torture, and years of interment under brutal conditions of privation, torture and utter hopelessness. Stalin seems to have been the most arbitrary and “irrational” in his actions in this regard, followed by Hitler and Mao. But negligence? No, nowhere does negligence enter the picture. If you want to appreciate the sheer magnitude of Mao’s knowing evil, I strongly recommend two books: MAO: THE UNKNOWN STORY and WILD SWANS, both by Chang and Halliday. These two books were well researched and draw heavily on first-hand accounts of Mao’s life and actions. THE UNKNOWN STORY was ten years in the writing.

My problem in assigning “blame” in the case of these three men is that it is largely an exercise empty of meaning, except for any utility it may have in understanding the underlying psychopathology present in these men and perhaps, in finding a way to prevent or treat it in the future. Otherwise, it is a sterile exercise, akin to trying to determining how many devils can dance on the head of a pinpoint of empathy and humanity. — Mike Darwin.

I don’t think Max has been at Alcor long enough at all to be able to evaluate how he is doing yet. He has been more public, which has been nice.

It is disheartening to find out about the backgrounds of many in cryonics, but thankfully not all are highly eccentric or on the fringe of normal society. It is a very small community however, there are not a lot of members to draw from for leadership (less than 2000 signed cryonicists). It has been growing over time, but really anyone who starts to delve into how cryonics is run realizes they either have to help out, or make do with how things are.

Mark, I would point out that there is a difference between cognitive impairment and moral impairment. I don’t think the impairment in Cheney’s cognition had nearly as much impact on his actions as the impairment in his morality. The vast majority of 60 year old men have suffered much more cognitive impairment from aging than would be incurred from an hour or so on the heart lung machine. Of course, they ARE additive… But remember, Cheney’s actions and ideology are not unique to Cheney, or not men with severe heart disease and a history of CABG. — Mike Darwin

Wikipedia seems to be incomplete; I remember reading the other day an article on his new autobiography which said he had spent something like a week unconscious after one of the surgeries. Which certainly doesn’t sound good.