Steve Harris MD, (Alcor's Chief Medical Advisor), posting on the "Anti-Cult" site:
"Ms. Maxim is hardly shocked, as years ago she worked for a cryonics company where it was her job to inventory medical kits which stocked propofol for use in cryonics patients."
http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,64749,page=31
Ms. Maxim is shocked to see Steve Harris MD persist in publicly describing her activities, at Suspended Animation, in spite of the fact he is well aware that many of his previous comments on her activities were blatant lies.
In the past, Steve Harris MD has gone so far as to falsely accuse me of lying about my credentials and of stealing documents from my employee folder, (including a non-disclosure agreement that never existed), at Suspended Animation. As Harris knows, the person who provided him with this false information hired an attorney and issued a public retraction and apology, after I threatened to sue all of them for libel. Harris works at Critical Care Research (CCR) in California, Suspended Animation (SA) is in Florida. Harris never set foot in the SA facility, while I was there. It was not my "job to inventory medical kits which stocked propofol." That was Kelly Kingston's job, something Harris should be well aware of, since, when he publicly blamed me for needed medical equipment that was not in the kits for a case, (five months after my resignation, no less), I made it very clear that, while I was working at SA, no one had been allowed to open the kits, (much less add anything, or remove anything), other than under the supervision of Kelly Kingston, who was responsible for the inventory of the kits. (Harris might refer to Charles Platt's apology, Paragraph V.)
Regardless, I was indeed aware that propofol was a medication in SA's standby protocol. HOWEVER, it was my understanding this was ONE dose, to be administered immediately after death had been pronounced. I was never made aware of a policy Harris recently described, (on the Cold Filter cryonics forum), which calls for administering additional propofol to a person who shows signs of life, during a cryonics procedure. Anyone who shows signs of awareness is not dead, and it is illegal to perform cryonics procedures on people who are alive. I am truly shocked that Harris would make such a statement, and not seem to realize the implications.
.
Friday, March 12, 2010
Thursday, March 11, 2010
Steve Harris MD Drops Bombshell on Cold Filter Cryonics Forum
***Edited March 12, 2010, with note at the bottom.
On March 7, 2010, Steven B Harris MD, of Critical Care Research, a physician associated with both Alcor Life Extension Foundation and Suspended Animation, wrote the following, on the Cold Filter cryonics forum, in response to my questions about the drug propofol (Diprivan):
"We give 200 mg. There you are. If there are any signs of awareness later, such as eyelid movement or even shivering (not a sign of awareness but certainly a sign of CNS activity), another equal dose is held in reserve."
http://www.network54.com/Forum/291677/message/1268000067/Propofol+dose
In other words, they give an initial dose of 200mg propofol to people, at the time of "legal death." Then, in the event the person for whom they are providing cryonics services, (which include the application of CPR), shows signs of life, they give another 200mg dose of propofol, to render the person unconscious, so they can continue with their cryonics procedures. (The "we" in Harris' post refers to cryonics standby teams from Alcor Life Extension Foundation, in Scottsdale, Arizona, and Suspended Animation, in Boynton Beach, Florida. Suspended Animation also provides standby services for Cryonics Institute, in Michigan.)
If they see signs of life, administer more propofol, and continue with their procedures, (which would result in death), could they be accused of murder? Since Harris' statement indicates this has been planned in advance, would it be premeditated murder? Are Baldwin, Kingston, Battiato, Sullivan, Schroeder or Ruc, (the last publicly-named employees of Suspended Animation), willing to administer that "reserve" dose of propofol to a person showing signs of life? What about Alcor paramedic, Aaron Drake? Are the licensed, certified perfusionists who have been working with Suspended Animation aware of this policy? Are they willing to be a part of it? What about Ben Best, the president of Cryonics Institute, who has been an enthusiastic advocate of Suspended Animation's services? Does he, or anyone else at Cryonics Institute, endorse this plan?
For several years, now, I have been questioning certain cryonics activities, especially those that appear to be "ticking time bombs," with the potential to bring down the entire cryonics industry. I firmly believe that, considering the amount of money being invested by Life Extension Foundation, (which provides funding for Suspended Animation, Critical Care Research and 21st Century Medicine), and Alcor, (which also receives some funding from Life Extension Foundation), cryonics activities could be carried out in a much more ethical, professional manner. I believe there are ways to provide services superior to those currently being provided, and in a manner that would not constantly draw accusations of unethical and/or illegal behaviors. Is it the goal of the organizations involved to protect the cryonics industry, by properly addressing issues, such as this one? Or, do they really think quashing people like Larry Johnson, and me, would solve all their problems? I've got news for them...for every person who complains about them, publicly, there are dozens who are taking other avenues to register their complaints.
Harris: "If there are any signs of awareness later, such as eyelid movement or even shivering (not a sign of awareness but certainly a sign of CNS activity), another equal dose is held in reserve."
Maxim: Did Harris just write that, in the event a cryonics patient shows signs of life, the cryonics team is going to give them another dose of propofol? Shivering means the muscles are receiving signals from the hypothalamus and, as far as I know, legally dead people do not shiver. In fact, when people are subjected to hypothermia, they usually stop shivering even before they lose consciousness.
Note: On March 12, 2010, Steve Harris MD commented, further, on the use of propofol, in cryonics. He wrote:
"It is thus in cryonics that there is a theoretical possibility that a person in cardiac arrest who has been classed as legally dead might become aware of chest compression. We all hope this never happens, and part of the purpose of propofol is be sure that it does not."
http://www.network54.com/Forum/291677/message/1268372701/I+Can%27t+Believe+You+Missed+This
Anyone who "becomes aware" is alive, and it is illegal to perform cryonics procedures on people who are alive. Harris has already stated that they keep 200mg of propofol in "reserve," in case the person shows signs of awareness (life). This strongly implies they fully intend to inject a living person with the drug propofol, so they can continue their cryonics procedures, in the event someone responds to their CPR efforts and regains consciousness.
The protocols need to be revised and, no, (in a response to a question in Harris' post), I am not suggesting waiting 10-15 minutes. If that is the only alternative Harris and his peers can come up with, they aren't thinking very hard. The problem with the status quo in cryonics, is they are not open to change, especially if it involves admitting they have been wrong, or changing any of the protocols and/or equipment they have designed.
On March 7, 2010, Steven B Harris MD, of Critical Care Research, a physician associated with both Alcor Life Extension Foundation and Suspended Animation, wrote the following, on the Cold Filter cryonics forum, in response to my questions about the drug propofol (Diprivan):
"We give 200 mg. There you are. If there are any signs of awareness later, such as eyelid movement or even shivering (not a sign of awareness but certainly a sign of CNS activity), another equal dose is held in reserve."
http://www.network54.com/Forum/291677/message/1268000067/Propofol+dose
In other words, they give an initial dose of 200mg propofol to people, at the time of "legal death." Then, in the event the person for whom they are providing cryonics services, (which include the application of CPR), shows signs of life, they give another 200mg dose of propofol, to render the person unconscious, so they can continue with their cryonics procedures. (The "we" in Harris' post refers to cryonics standby teams from Alcor Life Extension Foundation, in Scottsdale, Arizona, and Suspended Animation, in Boynton Beach, Florida. Suspended Animation also provides standby services for Cryonics Institute, in Michigan.)
If they see signs of life, administer more propofol, and continue with their procedures, (which would result in death), could they be accused of murder? Since Harris' statement indicates this has been planned in advance, would it be premeditated murder? Are Baldwin, Kingston, Battiato, Sullivan, Schroeder or Ruc, (the last publicly-named employees of Suspended Animation), willing to administer that "reserve" dose of propofol to a person showing signs of life? What about Alcor paramedic, Aaron Drake? Are the licensed, certified perfusionists who have been working with Suspended Animation aware of this policy? Are they willing to be a part of it? What about Ben Best, the president of Cryonics Institute, who has been an enthusiastic advocate of Suspended Animation's services? Does he, or anyone else at Cryonics Institute, endorse this plan?
For several years, now, I have been questioning certain cryonics activities, especially those that appear to be "ticking time bombs," with the potential to bring down the entire cryonics industry. I firmly believe that, considering the amount of money being invested by Life Extension Foundation, (which provides funding for Suspended Animation, Critical Care Research and 21st Century Medicine), and Alcor, (which also receives some funding from Life Extension Foundation), cryonics activities could be carried out in a much more ethical, professional manner. I believe there are ways to provide services superior to those currently being provided, and in a manner that would not constantly draw accusations of unethical and/or illegal behaviors. Is it the goal of the organizations involved to protect the cryonics industry, by properly addressing issues, such as this one? Or, do they really think quashing people like Larry Johnson, and me, would solve all their problems? I've got news for them...for every person who complains about them, publicly, there are dozens who are taking other avenues to register their complaints.
Harris: "If there are any signs of awareness later, such as eyelid movement or even shivering (not a sign of awareness but certainly a sign of CNS activity), another equal dose is held in reserve."
Maxim: Did Harris just write that, in the event a cryonics patient shows signs of life, the cryonics team is going to give them another dose of propofol? Shivering means the muscles are receiving signals from the hypothalamus and, as far as I know, legally dead people do not shiver. In fact, when people are subjected to hypothermia, they usually stop shivering even before they lose consciousness.
Note: On March 12, 2010, Steve Harris MD commented, further, on the use of propofol, in cryonics. He wrote:
"It is thus in cryonics that there is a theoretical possibility that a person in cardiac arrest who has been classed as legally dead might become aware of chest compression. We all hope this never happens, and part of the purpose of propofol is be sure that it does not."
http://www.network54.com/Forum/291677/message/1268372701/I+Can%27t+Believe+You+Missed+This
Anyone who "becomes aware" is alive, and it is illegal to perform cryonics procedures on people who are alive. Harris has already stated that they keep 200mg of propofol in "reserve," in case the person shows signs of awareness (life). This strongly implies they fully intend to inject a living person with the drug propofol, so they can continue their cryonics procedures, in the event someone responds to their CPR efforts and regains consciousness.
The protocols need to be revised and, no, (in a response to a question in Harris' post), I am not suggesting waiting 10-15 minutes. If that is the only alternative Harris and his peers can come up with, they aren't thinking very hard. The problem with the status quo in cryonics, is they are not open to change, especially if it involves admitting they have been wrong, or changing any of the protocols and/or equipment they have designed.
Monday, March 8, 2010
Responses to my Questions about Propofol
When I worked in heart surgery, every person in the room had a job to do. While I could tell you the basics of most of the drugs the anesthesia personnel were administering, I didn't always know the specifics about the dosing, just as they did not know the details about the job I was doing. In the short time I worked at SA, I never got around to fully exploring, much less questioning, the medications protocol. At the time, I had no reason to question the designers of the protocols, and I was spending more time than I should have had to spend, fighting for changes that were within my realm of expertise, and some that seemed like they should have been simple common sense.
After the Johnson book came out, people started to ask me about the use of certain drugs in cryonics, and after the Michael Jackson incident, the focus centered on propofol. People wanted to know why laymen had access to a drug most medical professionals working in hospitals aren't allowed access to. When I raised that issue on the Cold Filter cryonics forum, Mathew Sullivan responded that Suspended Animation (SA) was not carrying enough propofol to warrant anyone accusing them of hastening the deaths of patients. Not recalling what SA's dose was, and not having one of SA's handy-dandy laminated protocols available, (three years after my resignation from that company), I remembered the meds were listed in the CI-81 case report. When I read "20mg," and looked up the dosing for propofol, I thought, "Geeez...that's nothing more than a hand-waving gesture." (Note: Somewhere along the line, I inadvertently starting typing "25mg," rather than "20mg." Platt can go on about this all he wants, but it's really meaningless. What is important is that I was questioning an extremely small dose.)
When Harris explained the dose was 200mg, and Platt said the amount in the SA report was a typo, I wrote that even 200mg seemed like a meaningless dose. Platt responded to that, with some wisecrack about my expertise, (as if "expertise" has ever been important to someone who totally disregards an expert's advice on existing equipment and sends laymen to perform medical procedures). It doesn't take expertise to form the opinion that 200mg is not enough propofol to keep someone unconscious very long, with readily-available information, regarding propofol dosing. Propofol is super-fast acting, but the effects are very short-lived, and it moves rapidly from the central nervous system, into the peripheral tissues. I think anyone reading the following information would agree that 200mg of propofol doesn't seem like enough to do what Mathew, FD and Harris claimed it was doing, ("keeping people dead," while CPR was being administered).
"anesthesia induction (healthy adults less than 55 yo)
Dose: 2-2.5 mg/kg IV given as 40 mg q10sec until induction onset...
...anesthesia maintenance (healthy adults less than 55 yo)
Dose: 0.1-0.2 mg/kg/min IV; Alt: 25-50 mg IV prn"
https://online.epocrates.com/u/1011979/Diprivan/Adult+Dosing
Using the low end of this suggested dosing, for a 70kg (154lb) man, the dosing would be 140mg for induction, followed by 7mg per min (420mg per hour)."
.
After the Johnson book came out, people started to ask me about the use of certain drugs in cryonics, and after the Michael Jackson incident, the focus centered on propofol. People wanted to know why laymen had access to a drug most medical professionals working in hospitals aren't allowed access to. When I raised that issue on the Cold Filter cryonics forum, Mathew Sullivan responded that Suspended Animation (SA) was not carrying enough propofol to warrant anyone accusing them of hastening the deaths of patients. Not recalling what SA's dose was, and not having one of SA's handy-dandy laminated protocols available, (three years after my resignation from that company), I remembered the meds were listed in the CI-81 case report. When I read "20mg," and looked up the dosing for propofol, I thought, "Geeez...that's nothing more than a hand-waving gesture." (Note: Somewhere along the line, I inadvertently starting typing "25mg," rather than "20mg." Platt can go on about this all he wants, but it's really meaningless. What is important is that I was questioning an extremely small dose.)
When Harris explained the dose was 200mg, and Platt said the amount in the SA report was a typo, I wrote that even 200mg seemed like a meaningless dose. Platt responded to that, with some wisecrack about my expertise, (as if "expertise" has ever been important to someone who totally disregards an expert's advice on existing equipment and sends laymen to perform medical procedures). It doesn't take expertise to form the opinion that 200mg is not enough propofol to keep someone unconscious very long, with readily-available information, regarding propofol dosing. Propofol is super-fast acting, but the effects are very short-lived, and it moves rapidly from the central nervous system, into the peripheral tissues. I think anyone reading the following information would agree that 200mg of propofol doesn't seem like enough to do what Mathew, FD and Harris claimed it was doing, ("keeping people dead," while CPR was being administered).
"anesthesia induction (healthy adults less than 55 yo)
Dose: 2-2.5 mg/kg IV given as 40 mg q10sec until induction onset...
...anesthesia maintenance (healthy adults less than 55 yo)
Dose: 0.1-0.2 mg/kg/min IV; Alt: 25-50 mg IV prn"
https://online.epocrates.com/u/1011979/Diprivan/Adult+Dosing
Using the low end of this suggested dosing, for a 70kg (154lb) man, the dosing would be 140mg for induction, followed by 7mg per min (420mg per hour)."
.
Wednesday, March 3, 2010
Retracting My Acceptance of Steve Harris' Apology
Back in November 2009, Steve Harris MD, of Critical Care Research, in Rancho Cucamonga, CA, (primarily funded by Life Extension Foundation), issued an apology, to me, on the "Cold Filter" cryonics forum, for untrue remarks he posted in 2007. I accepted his apology, at the time, but after further thought, I think I made a mistake.
In his apology, Harris claimed to have thought he had already apologized. The truth is, when I asked him to apologize at the time he posted the untrue statements, he responded with, "So sue me, baby." I find it impossible to believe he went from that remark to thinking he had issued an apology. Harris also claimed to be interested in knowing the truth, regarding the false statements he had made about me, on the Internet. I publicly invited him to contact me, privately, so I could provide him with the details without rehashing the events, in public, again. Since he didn't follow up, I was left wondering if his apology was insincere, and issued only with the goal of cleaning up his tarnished public image. Furthermore, since the apology, I've had to ask myself if Steve Harris is someone I would want to be congenial with, and the unequivocal answer to that is "No."
In his book, "Mothermelters," former Riverside County Coroner's Investigator Alan Kunzman wrote that Steve Harris admitted to knowing a woman, whose death certificate he signed, had died in an industrial park, though the death certificate falsely indicated she died at a residence. Why would he do sign such a document, if he was aware of the inaccuracy?
Steve Harris, and members of his family, have financially benefitted for many years, for conducting dog experiments, which I find to be highly questionable. According to LEF's form 990's, in the years 2008 and 2007, alone, Critical Care Research received nearly two million dollars, ($1,824,500), in funding, from LEF. When I was working at Suspended Animation, I was told the four fulltime employees of CCR were Harris, his wife, his mother-in-law and her significant other. We don't know who the employees currently are, (though I think it's probably safe to assume nothing much has changed), or much about what goes on at CCR. Like their sister LEF-funded organization, Suspended Animation, they are quite secretive.
Steve Harris endorses physicians, such as himself, being allowed to write prescriptions for medications to be transported and administered by cryonics personnel, (including laymen, with no medical credentials, or experience), who would not be allowed to have access to, transport, or administer these medications, in a conventional medical setting. He gets paid for acting as a "consultant," for these inexperienced persons, but does not accept responsibility for their activities. When I remarked on him not advising a cryonics team to give a maintainence dose of a certain medication, he said he would have done so, "if they had asked." He knows, as well as I do, that those people did not know to ask about any of the medications they were administering.
When I criticized CCR's sister organization, Suspended Animation, of Boynton Beach, FL, (also funded by Life Extension Foundation), Steve Harris responded by posting numerous blatant lies about me, (someone he did not know), on the Internet. A responsible physician might have written, "I have concerns about Ms. Maxim's statements, because I've heard some disturbing stories about her," but Harris wrote, I did and didn't do certain things, while working at Suspended Animation, as fact, when he had no firsthand knowledge of what I did, or didn't do, at SA, and everything he wrote was a lie. Why would he do such a foolish thing? In order to fulfill his benefactor's "loyalty" requirement?
Recently, when I questioned cryonics organizations allowing laymen to have free access to, transport, and administer the drug propofol, Steve Harris, along with SA employee Mathew Sullivan, and "FD" an anonymous poster on the Cold Filter cryonics forum, argued that the 20mg* of propofol in question was necessary so Alcor and/or SA could administer CPR to patients who had just died, without causing them pain, or waking them up. Nonsense. Propofol has an extremely short duration of action, (minutes), and a conservative dosing of propofol, for a 70kg (154lb) man, for the purposes of maintaining unconsciousness would be 140mg for induction, followed by 7mg per min (420mg per hour). https://online.epocrates.com/u/1011979/Diprivan/Adult+Dosing
As for Harris' claim that cryonics organizations were "ahead" of conventional medicine, in recognizing that persons being subjected to CPR might experience pain, I'm going to remind him the people receiving cryonics services are supposed to be dead, and therefore, should not perceive pain. I'm also still waiting for him, or anyone else, to provide evidence of civil lawsuits that have resulted from patient awareness and pain, during the administration of CPR.
So, why is Steve Harris willing to endorse writing prescriptions for laymen to carry and administer 20mg* of propofol? I don't believe responsible physicians would endorse such activity. Was including propofol in cryonics medications protocol designed to make the public think the people carrying this, and other prescription medications, are medical professionals? Does it make them feel like they are medical professionals? Does it offer Steve Harris a greater degree of job security? Is it really a good idea for cryonics organization to be using this drug, in light of past accusations of hastening the deaths of patients?
In my opinion, Steve Harris MD is a physician who has acted irresponsibly, unprofessionally, and/or unethically, on at least several occasions. I seriously doubt his apology was sincere, and therefore, have no reason to accept it.
*Note: Steve Harris now claims, (on the Cold Filter cryonics forum), that the dose is 200mg, rather than the 20mg reported in at least one of Suspended Animation's case reports, but even 200mg is a rather insignificant dose. Propofol stays in the central nervous system (CNS) for only a matter of minutes, after which it rapidly moves into the peripheral tissues.
In his apology, Harris claimed to have thought he had already apologized. The truth is, when I asked him to apologize at the time he posted the untrue statements, he responded with, "So sue me, baby." I find it impossible to believe he went from that remark to thinking he had issued an apology. Harris also claimed to be interested in knowing the truth, regarding the false statements he had made about me, on the Internet. I publicly invited him to contact me, privately, so I could provide him with the details without rehashing the events, in public, again. Since he didn't follow up, I was left wondering if his apology was insincere, and issued only with the goal of cleaning up his tarnished public image. Furthermore, since the apology, I've had to ask myself if Steve Harris is someone I would want to be congenial with, and the unequivocal answer to that is "No."
In his book, "Mothermelters," former Riverside County Coroner's Investigator Alan Kunzman wrote that Steve Harris admitted to knowing a woman, whose death certificate he signed, had died in an industrial park, though the death certificate falsely indicated she died at a residence. Why would he do sign such a document, if he was aware of the inaccuracy?
Steve Harris, and members of his family, have financially benefitted for many years, for conducting dog experiments, which I find to be highly questionable. According to LEF's form 990's, in the years 2008 and 2007, alone, Critical Care Research received nearly two million dollars, ($1,824,500), in funding, from LEF. When I was working at Suspended Animation, I was told the four fulltime employees of CCR were Harris, his wife, his mother-in-law and her significant other. We don't know who the employees currently are, (though I think it's probably safe to assume nothing much has changed), or much about what goes on at CCR. Like their sister LEF-funded organization, Suspended Animation, they are quite secretive.
Steve Harris endorses physicians, such as himself, being allowed to write prescriptions for medications to be transported and administered by cryonics personnel, (including laymen, with no medical credentials, or experience), who would not be allowed to have access to, transport, or administer these medications, in a conventional medical setting. He gets paid for acting as a "consultant," for these inexperienced persons, but does not accept responsibility for their activities. When I remarked on him not advising a cryonics team to give a maintainence dose of a certain medication, he said he would have done so, "if they had asked." He knows, as well as I do, that those people did not know to ask about any of the medications they were administering.
When I criticized CCR's sister organization, Suspended Animation, of Boynton Beach, FL, (also funded by Life Extension Foundation), Steve Harris responded by posting numerous blatant lies about me, (someone he did not know), on the Internet. A responsible physician might have written, "I have concerns about Ms. Maxim's statements, because I've heard some disturbing stories about her," but Harris wrote, I did and didn't do certain things, while working at Suspended Animation, as fact, when he had no firsthand knowledge of what I did, or didn't do, at SA, and everything he wrote was a lie. Why would he do such a foolish thing? In order to fulfill his benefactor's "loyalty" requirement?
Recently, when I questioned cryonics organizations allowing laymen to have free access to, transport, and administer the drug propofol, Steve Harris, along with SA employee Mathew Sullivan, and "FD" an anonymous poster on the Cold Filter cryonics forum, argued that the 20mg* of propofol in question was necessary so Alcor and/or SA could administer CPR to patients who had just died, without causing them pain, or waking them up. Nonsense. Propofol has an extremely short duration of action, (minutes), and a conservative dosing of propofol, for a 70kg (154lb) man, for the purposes of maintaining unconsciousness would be 140mg for induction, followed by 7mg per min (420mg per hour). https://online.epocrates.com/u/1011979/Diprivan/Adult+Dosing
As for Harris' claim that cryonics organizations were "ahead" of conventional medicine, in recognizing that persons being subjected to CPR might experience pain, I'm going to remind him the people receiving cryonics services are supposed to be dead, and therefore, should not perceive pain. I'm also still waiting for him, or anyone else, to provide evidence of civil lawsuits that have resulted from patient awareness and pain, during the administration of CPR.
So, why is Steve Harris willing to endorse writing prescriptions for laymen to carry and administer 20mg* of propofol? I don't believe responsible physicians would endorse such activity. Was including propofol in cryonics medications protocol designed to make the public think the people carrying this, and other prescription medications, are medical professionals? Does it make them feel like they are medical professionals? Does it offer Steve Harris a greater degree of job security? Is it really a good idea for cryonics organization to be using this drug, in light of past accusations of hastening the deaths of patients?
In my opinion, Steve Harris MD is a physician who has acted irresponsibly, unprofessionally, and/or unethically, on at least several occasions. I seriously doubt his apology was sincere, and therefore, have no reason to accept it.
*Note: Steve Harris now claims, (on the Cold Filter cryonics forum), that the dose is 200mg, rather than the 20mg reported in at least one of Suspended Animation's case reports, but even 200mg is a rather insignificant dose. Propofol stays in the central nervous system (CNS) for only a matter of minutes, after which it rapidly moves into the peripheral tissues.
Monday, March 1, 2010
Mary Robbins' Intentions
I'm waiting to see how the judge rules, in the Robbins case. This morning, I read that Alcor now wants to preserve Ms. Robbins' head, as a charitable act, stating they want to follow through with her wishes. If I were the judge, I would rule that it is unreasonable to believe Ms. Robbins withdrew payment for services she still wanted to receive. It makes a lot more sense to believe she no longer wished to receive Alcor's services, when she changed the beneficiary of her annuity, effectively cancelling her payment to Alcor.
Thursday, February 25, 2010
Build Up, or Tear Down?
I used to live in an older community, by the water, (ironically, just a few streets over from Bill Faloon's house). While the small, older, original homes were unimpressive, the property they sat on was very valuable. A lot of the residents wanted larger, more modern homes, so there was always a lot of construction going on. Whenever I would see a contractor's signs in one of my neighbor's yards, I would ask, "Building up, or tearing down?"
Sometimes, a contractor would be able to update the original home, and add a second story. However, some of the foundations simply could not support the larger, more valuable, more attractive, more functional structure, so the original home would have to be demolished. Makes me think of Alcor. What is there to build on?
Sometimes, a contractor would be able to update the original home, and add a second story. However, some of the foundations simply could not support the larger, more valuable, more attractive, more functional structure, so the original home would have to be demolished. Makes me think of Alcor. What is there to build on?
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
More Remarks from Alcor's Attorneys
Now we have Alcor/LEF superstar attorney, Clifford Wolff, making remarks I find questionable:
"Wolff said that even though the company's preferred preservation techniques were not followed in the hours after Robbins death, the company's scientists have said cryopreservation is still possible."
"She's been on dry ice at a super-cooled temperature, which allows for cryopreservation," (Clifford Wolff) said. http://abcnews.go.com/Health/Wellness/grandmothers-frozen-head-grabs-colorado-court/story?id=9911768&page=3
If you use the traditional definition of "cryopreservation," it means to preserve something by cooling to sub-zero temperatures, and implies little-to-nothing, regarding viability. I could have cryopreserved the rotten banana I threw out a few minutes ago, but I doubt I would want to eat it in the future, any more than I did this morning. I could cryopreserve the bloated racoon I saw, in the middle of the street, yesterday, but since it's been there for more than a week, I don't think it will be waking up again, even given the benefit of future nanotech.
Whether Alcor is really concerned with fulfilling Ms. Robbins' wishes, or just trying to prove a point and collect $50K, I think they are making a HUGE mistake. While a few hundred, or even a few thousand, people interested in cryopreservation may find Alcor's efforts "heroic," most people are going to view them as a bunch of opportunistic ghouls. Is this one person, (who didn't move closer to Alcor, when she knew she was dying and Alcor suggested she do so, and didn't take steps to make sure her family did not interfere, and perhaps truly did change her mind at the last minute, (just as Timothy Leary did)), really worth the bad publicity involved? Alcor seems to be on a collision course with regulation, or extinction.
I also tend to think the use of the term "super-cooled," in Wolff's remarks, may be misleading.
Definition of "super-cooling:" lowering the temperature of a liquid, or gas, below the freezing temperature, without it becoming a solid
http://www.answers.com/topic/supercooling
"Wolff said that even though the company's preferred preservation techniques were not followed in the hours after Robbins death, the company's scientists have said cryopreservation is still possible."
"She's been on dry ice at a super-cooled temperature, which allows for cryopreservation," (Clifford Wolff) said. http://abcnews.go.com/Health/Wellness/grandmothers-frozen-head-grabs-colorado-court/story?id=9911768&page=3
If you use the traditional definition of "cryopreservation," it means to preserve something by cooling to sub-zero temperatures, and implies little-to-nothing, regarding viability. I could have cryopreserved the rotten banana I threw out a few minutes ago, but I doubt I would want to eat it in the future, any more than I did this morning. I could cryopreserve the bloated racoon I saw, in the middle of the street, yesterday, but since it's been there for more than a week, I don't think it will be waking up again, even given the benefit of future nanotech.
Whether Alcor is really concerned with fulfilling Ms. Robbins' wishes, or just trying to prove a point and collect $50K, I think they are making a HUGE mistake. While a few hundred, or even a few thousand, people interested in cryopreservation may find Alcor's efforts "heroic," most people are going to view them as a bunch of opportunistic ghouls. Is this one person, (who didn't move closer to Alcor, when she knew she was dying and Alcor suggested she do so, and didn't take steps to make sure her family did not interfere, and perhaps truly did change her mind at the last minute, (just as Timothy Leary did)), really worth the bad publicity involved? Alcor seems to be on a collision course with regulation, or extinction.
I also tend to think the use of the term "super-cooled," in Wolff's remarks, may be misleading.
Definition of "super-cooling:" lowering the temperature of a liquid, or gas, below the freezing temperature, without it becoming a solid
http://www.answers.com/topic/supercooling
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)