ImmorTalist Manifesto, The: Stay Young & Save the World
by: Elixxir
Topics include:
About the Author
Elixxir is the Immortalist philosopher and diet-lifestyle guru. Harvards Cornel West has described Elixxirs mind as razor-sharp and his work as first rate! The Immortalist Manifesto: Stay Young & Save The World is adapted from his Honors paper at Yale University.
Elixxirs philosophy and lifestyle are intertwined. He has been on the only scientific anti-aging life-extension program for almost a quarter of a century. The result? Elixxir looks twenty-something at almost 50.
As the Master Coach of The Elixxir Program, Elixxir is the only anti-aging guru who has actually stayed young. Dr. David Weeks writes in Secrets of the SuperYoung (Random): Elixxir is most amazingly youthful, he is himself his own best argument in favor of the regimen. Investors Business Dailys Marilyn Much raves: Preternaturally youthful. Seeing is believing! Can you afford to die? If not, theres no better investment than The Elixxir Program.
A thought-provoking, entertaining, transformational public speaker and workshop/seminar leader, Elixxir is available for lectures, debates, workshops and personal coaching.
He is completing his chronicles and meditations to celebrate living la dolce vita for almost a quarter of a century on the only anti-aging program known to science.
Why Some Hate This Book & Why I Love It
It is ironic that some Caloric Restrictionists and Cryonics zealots have planted such hateful reviews on "The ImmorTalist Manifesto." It rivals the venom of the Religious Right. The question is why?
Yes, a little research confirms there is indeed a lengthy LIFE EXTENSION MAGAZINE rave review of this book, which described it as "AN EXTRAORDINARY BOOK WHICH CHALLENGES THE BELIEF THAT WE MUST GROW OLD AND DIE." And yes, WIRED MAGAZINE's biotech writer Brian Alexander has hailed this book as "A CLASSIC." Excuse the bold type. I know it's tacky, but perhaps it's excusable in light of all the disinformation littering this page.
Michael Rae, a leading light of the Caloric Restriction crowd, wrote in his review about The ImmorTalist Manifesto: "Read the book...The stakes are enormous, for you and everyone you know....I was immediately taken with it...ensorceled, enmeshed...It won't just happen, argues the (ImmorTalist) Manifesto: it must be MADE to happen....What is truly new about The ImmorTalist Manifesto is its vision of a society transformed to actually achieve physical immortality." (Dec. 19, 2001 review by Michael Rae)
Rudi Hoffman from the cryonics list wrote in his May 30, 2002 review: "And then it hit me squarely between the eyes, a paradigm shift...(Elixxir) has a basic premise that is profoundly and movingly RIGHT!....Elixxir is powerful, original, and profound...Elixxir...has issued a clarion call that we are all dying, and the only way to fight the aging and death facing all of us is to pressure government to create a 'war on aging'."
To me, it was a no-brainer. Do I accept on faith the rantings of nameless posters or the reviews from Life Extension Magazine and Wired? Not to mention rave reviews right from the citadels of the caloric restriction and cryonics sects itself -- before their "leaders" decreed a different party line against Elixxir.
I was hugely rewarded for my common sense. And you will be too. This is a Big Book. It is not a garden-variety diet book, but a profound and revolutionary alternative worldview. Which Elixxir argues is absolutely essential if we are to have any chance in staying youthful, staying healthy, and -- alive.
Without such a new "immortalist" worldview, Elixxir argues, there can be no viable immortalist movement. And without a real potent immortalist movement to push politically for the anti-aging breakthroughs to come in time for us, the cures for what he calls "The Aging Syndrome" and its symptoms -- for example, cancer and heart disease -- will not come in time to save you and me.
Written in the aphoristic style of a Nietzsche and with the tone and cadence of Marx' Communist Manifesto, The ImmorTalist Manifesto is indeed a book with real earthshaking potential. A new paradigm it is. And I know how much abused that word is. But it is also call to action. But an incredibly potent one too.
This is actually a book that the so-called "leaders" of the caloric restriction and cryonics sects should be welcoming with open arms. For if there is any hope at all for their dream, this is it. Why? Because as history and Lenin tells us: there can be no revolutionary movement without a revolutionary theory.
The feminist movement had Betty Friedan's Feminine Mystique. The environmentalist movement Rachel Carson's Silent Spring. The gay movements its many tracts and manifestoes. But the fledging immortalist movement remains fledging if not stillborn because it has never had an equivalent. And no, Ettinger's The Prospect for Immortality is not. It is easy to discern this by comparing Ettinger's book to Elixxir's manifesto.
Ettinger book is so naive socially and politically. In his book, he assumes that physical immortality can be nothing more than a self-help do-it-yourself project. Elixxir points out in his book that this "do-it-yourselfism" is doomed. We can no more go to the moon on our own than conquer Old Age and Death by our own Calvinistic efforts! Elixxir argues, and who but a fool can argue with that?
Elixxir's ImmorTalist Manifesto urgently argues that a new political movement must be launched to maximize our chances to escape the abyss and not become food-for-worms like our ancestors. And the way Elixxir exhorts us to and provides us with the practical vision and map to make this happen is exhilarating.
There are so many jolting insights in page after page of this seminal book. For example, Elixxir argues that the number one threat to Americans (and Brits) is not "terrorism" but heart disease and cancer. Less than 3,000 were killed in the 9/11 attacks. As horrendous as this was, it is nothing compared to the annual pogroms of heart disease and cancer which kills three-quarters of a million and over half a million Americans each. And not just once, but every single year!
And yet the Bush regime puts fighting "terrorism" as its number one priority and argues that it justifies cutting back on research for heart disease or cancer, and for not giving us universal health insurance, and for wholesale confiscation of our civil liberties and freedoms.
And why does the regime arrive at this obviously irrational conclusion, and why do we accept it? Ah, that's where the chapter on The Death Society comes in. And on how we are all programmed from the gitgo to accept Old Age, Disease and Death. Or what Elixxir calls "Mortalism" or "The Death Ideology."
The ImmorTalist Manifesto by Elixxir is defiantly provocative and unabashedly controversial. But it is also truly original, profound, and groundbreaking. And a book which will move you and continue to grow in its impact on our lives as the years pass.
Last but not least, unlike books of this magnitude, The ImmorTalist Manifesto is actually a joy to read. It has cadence, poetry, elegance, polemics, satire, and searing insights and revelations. Your read will be a romp.
Perhaps it takes the young -- or the young-at-heart -- to have the guts to read this kind of book. But then perhaps that is the way it should be. For it is always the young - and the young at heart -- who changes the world for the better.
Anti-Aging Gurus Look Older? The Toxic Poisoning Delusion?
I bought this book after reading negative reviews of The Longevity Diet. I had heard that both the negative reviews (one by "David Spence" one by "Dr Dre Minake") were written by Elixxir, the author of The Immortalist Manifesto, but I didn't believe it. Now I'm thinking it's probably true. The Immortalist Manifesto is mostly a rambling rehash of things you can easily find on the Web about the possible benefits of a long-lived society. Some of the points made are important ones, but they're easy to find on the Web. There's no reason to buy this book. It is probably because of his insecurity about the merits of his own book that he feels he needs to go on the attack against other books dealing with a similar subject matter.
I'd also like to point out, like other reviewers, that an author who posts fake negative reviews - not one, but two! - under a fake name, of a new book just because he was spurned by one of the authors (also something I've heard, tho I'm not 100% certain it's true) is not someone I want to have as a teacher of ethics. Using a pseudonym for one review seems OK, since you might want to protect your privacy, but to "add a voice" falsely is really not kosher.
He also makes false claims (or implies them) about the nature of The Longevity Diet. There is nothing about "matchbox sized piece of salmon" in the book or any other book advocating Roy Walford's principles. Further, he says Walford "seems to have killed himself through his 'diet'". This is of course nonsense. Walford developed ALS. He died a tragic death that had nothing to do with his diet. Elixxir claims one needs "spiritual strength" to follow diets. Does one gain spiritual strength from a book written by a dishonest, back-stabber who is simply trying to get people to come his ridiculously expensive life-extension clinic in Scandinavia? I don't think so.
Reviews:
Closing in on imortality to the possible extent: 1/Love and be loved. 2/ Get as much education as you can.3/ Find a job that you like. 4/Exercise , averaging one hour of some sort of physical activity each day, including warm-ups, cardio and strength work, cool-downs, and stretching. 5/Eat fresh, whole, ripe, raw, organic fruits and vegetables, and drink the cleanest water available, distilled being the best.6/Floss. 7/ Avoid x-rays, and drugs of all kinds. 8/ Wear a seat-belt. 8/Get some early or late sun. 9/ Keep a lot of plants in your home.10/Don't smoke.11/Be born into a family without any genetic predispositions for disease. ...that is all for now...
The best ideas are the most threatening, this Manifesto proves it: I am amazed. I read a book that has changed my outlook on life: The Immortalist Manifesto. And I found it was trashed by a group of diet fanatics. Why? I am not sure. The book is profound and original and can make anyone question all of her or his current convictions: philosophy, religion, spirituality, life-style, values, priorities. And it makes you long for something better and makes you want to help build it. I think the spotlight reviewer "M. A. Plus "Advanced Atheist"" got parts of it right. BUT, he seems to be put off by Elixxir's political conslusions of his thinking, about his urgent call for reconstructing society according to new priorities and his claim that Europe is closer to an Immortalist society than the U.S.. (Here that reviewer is patially wrong btw: The U.S. is blocking biotech research because it is obsessed by Christian religion (mortalist religion according to Elixxir), while Europe or Asia has a more rational view of it.) I have long been interested in life-extension, for my own sake, I guess I am a bit of a Randian. But I see Elixxir's point. If you love life and wish to combat aging and death, you cannot expect to achieve this on your own. Neither can you afford to waste your life just obsessing about details in your eating habits using Walford's strict and inhuman caloric restriction methods (that probably killed him, according to available evidence!): All of those hateful people will die if they do not take political action (and in the meantime affirm life an eat in a healthy and low-calorie way to buy time of course). Which is exactly what Mr Elixxir's manifesto urges them to. If the Walford cult group runs the world we will all be dead and I guess they fell it. More importantly, Elixxir provides the spiritual fuel to be able to stay on a life-affirming eating program. Elixxir is singularly inspiring in his deconstruction of present society and culture and equally inspiring (if less concrete) in reconstructing a future society, built on other foundations. I think this book is highly original. It is not transhumanism, which is simply Randianism with an overdose of technology thrown in. No The Immortalist Manifesto creates itss own universe and should be read by every person on this earth. Our world might then become better indeed. /Dr Dre Minake, post-Randian: Collective action is necessary for the individual to survive
Boring and Predictable
Reviewer: Brian Delany II (Calorie Restriction Society President)
As other reviewers have pointed out, this book contains essentially nothing new. It's a long, high school level essay making a series of disconnected, entirely obvious points about the merits of trying to live longer. A large element of the book deals with ethics. Here's the problem. The author himself is one of the least ethical writers I have ever encountered. Because he was spurned by Roy Walford when he tried to get Walford to help him promote his book, the author went on a rampage to discredit Walford and everything connected to Walford. He is even posting fake "reviews", under fake identities, of Lisa Walford's and Brian Delaney's new book, The Longevity Diet, trying to get people to buy his book instead. And this is someone who wants me to buy his book about ethics? My recommendation: don't buy this book, try to write your own instead!
CR & Cryonics Lists Rave About The ImmorTalist Manifesto
Reviewer: Bryan Delaney III "Bryan" (Chicago, IL)
How many books can stir so much passion after 4 years? As for the identical hate "reviews" obviously planted by the same hand from the same list, all you need to do is consider an earlier objective review by Michael Rae, a leading light of the Caloric Restriction Society. Michael Rae wrote in his review about The ImmorTalist Manifesto: "Read the book...The stakes are enormous, for you and everyone you know....I was immediately taken with it...ensorceled, enmeshed...It won't just happen, argues the (ImmorTalist) Manifesto: it must be MADE to happen....What is truly new about The ImmorTalist Manifesto is its vision of a society transformed to actually achieve physical immortality." (Dec. 19, 2001 review by Michael Rae)
Consider another rave review by Rudi Hoffman on Ettinger's cryonics list. Hoffman wrote in his May 30, 2002 review: "And then it hit me squarely between the eyes, a paradigm shift...(Elixxir) has a basic premise that is profoundly and movingly RIGHT!....Elixxir is powerful, original, and profound...Elixxir...has issued a clarion call that we are all dying, and the only way to fight the aging and death facing all of us is to pressure government to create a 'war on aging'."
I have also checked and confirmed that LIFE EXTENSION MAGAZINE gave a long rave review to The ImmorTalist Manifesto and indeed described it as "an extraordinary book (which) challenges the belief that we must grow old and die." It got so excited about this Manifesto it even sold it (and is still selling it) to its 600,000 readers. Roy Walford was still on the magazine's advisory board when this rave review came out. This the fanatical Walford disciples won't tell you.
Last but not least, Wired Magazine's biotech writer Brian Alexander did indeed describe The ImmorTalist Manifesto as already a "classic" in its genre.
Surely the above were not all written by Elixxir.;) And surely the above were not duped. I decided the above critics are so much more credible than the hateful, shrill, rambling bashings by nameless faceless posters all of which dripped from the same source, the same ulterior motivation, and most likely the same pen.
And boy, am I glad I decided for myself! This is not a diet book, but it can definitely save your life. Do I agree with it 100%? Of course not. And neither will you. But If you want to have a real shot at fighting The Grim Reaper and the ravages of Old Age, this is IT. Don't take my word for it. Read it and make up your own mind. And as Elixxir would say, Stay Young & Prosper!
Wired Magazine: Immortalist Manifesto a "Classic"
I stumbled onto The ImmorTalist Manifesto by way of Wired Magazine's Brian Alexander who called the book a "classic." Thank goodness! Or I might have missed a really inspiring life-saving read.
Brian Alexander is a very respected biotech writer who has written excellent pieces on emerging scientific technology like cloning. He has been around the block. And not easily impressed. So it is very high praise indeed for a book which has been out only a few years.
Next, I checked out Life Extension Magazine's excellent review of The ImmorTalist Manifesto. It runs three pages and is definitely a rave review. I suggest you read the review in its entirety on the magazine's website.
The ImmorTalist Manifesto argues that we are on the verge of conquering Old Age and Death. The only question that matters, the book says, is will it come in time for you and me?
The book lays out a blueprint for making sure it does happen in time to save us. It argues, persuasively, that this is the only game in town. The only way to do it. It requires not only science and technology, but political will. And therefore politics. It argues we must create a powerful movement against the Death-loving policies (e.g. Iraq) of the Bush regime, which he argues is the foremost "Death Society."
This is an anti-aging anti-death manifesto. A new paradigm. A "call to arms." It must be like reading Adam Smith or Karl Marx when their manifestoes first came out. It must be how housewives felt when they read Betty Friedan's Feminine Mystique. Or when blacks first got exposed to Abolitionist literature. Or gays to gay liberation ideas.
Elixxir is *the* Immortalist philosopher. He is also an anti-aging guru. To me, and to him, there is no contradiction. He is a rare bird among philosophers. One who not only espouses new ideas, but also lives them. As for me, I prefer Elixxir to Arnold, the Terminator, or Reagan, the B-movie-actor, when it comes to icons and personas.;)
The ImmorTalist Manifesto is potent new wine. It is extremely provocative but also eye-opening and potentially life-transforming. But Its enemies sees "red" and cries "blashphemy" and desperately tries, through libels and innuendoes, to prevent us from checking it out ourselves.
P.S. The ImmorTalist Manifesto explains why John Paul II, this supposedly "pro-life" Pope, was so virulently against stem cell research which can save countless millions of people with cancer and heart disease. And The book shows how the Pope and the Vatican, just like Bush Jr. and the Pentagon, are part of what it calls "the Ideology of Death and The Death Society.
I'm glad I made up my own mind! Wired Magazine's Brian Alexander is right on. The ImmorTalist Manifesto has all the makings of a "classic." See for yourself.
A paradigm shift that apparently provokes
This book is indeed original. Its powerful analysis of the human condition escapes many of the reviewers here who simply seem so disturbed by the persona of Elixxir that they stop reading and analyzing. It is their loss.
While I do not agree about all the political inferences that the author makes I must confess that he opened my mind. He claims that human culture and history has one common over-arching theme: Creating substitutes for our real dream - physical individual immortality. We don't want to die. No, I don't!
Elixxir boldly claims there are three main substitutes for this dream: Religion (comforting or promising life after this), Achievement (building monuments, careers and so forth to make a mark on history, to be remembered), Children (stop living your own dreams and mould your offspring to do what you cannot, due to your limited life-span).
He claims that science can solve the real problem (death!) and usher in a state of the world where humanity may find real happiness.
Elixxir is adamant: Society must reallocate its resources to solve the problem of death. This has political implications that can be disturbing to libertarians and to (especially) U.S. transhumanists. I suspect that Elixxir's political views combined with his quite self-centered persona is what infuriates several reviewers.
Here in Europe the thought is less provocative since the state and collectivist politics are regarded quite differently. I am of a libertarian bent and I know that Europe will NOT change from its love of the big state. Within that framework I would however firmly support a radical reallocation of state resources from other areas to the quest for immortality.
Personally I think that e.g. the U.S. foreign policy is not self-serving. It costs absolutely mindboggling amounts and what does the American public get for their money? More danger of terrorist attacks maybe? Elixxir is straightforward about the absurdity of these priorities and rightly classifies societies as "Mortalist", "Post-Mortalist" and "Immortalist". Need I say that U.S. priorities makes it firmly Mortalist? Just like large parts of the world by the way. Death-loving theocracies, wherever they are and whatever religion they push, don't fare well either. Honors, to him!
Be open and read the book instead of writing personal slurs. It may actually change your whole outlook on life.