So, I don’t really care about Bryan Johnson, but his recent decision to quit taking rapamycin has lit up X and reddit.
There are a couple of effective critiques on the reddit sub. I don’t find his argument convincing, but I thought I’d post it here anyway.
https://x.com/KristerKauppi/status/1858466488987845016
I don’t personally want to live longer, but hope to keep my marbles for roughly as long as I live. Taking rapa is an attempt to prevent and treat Alzheimers, and to save my children caring for me, as I did for my father during his dementia.
Johnson’s motto (“Don’t die”) is so ridiculous and self-aggrandizing that I cringe to be part of the so- called longevity community.
The phenomenon of very rich men wanting to extend their lives without apparent regard for anyone else’s has become even more troubling since the election. Do we not understand that our personal longevity is intimately tied to the overall well-being of the planet?
Overall longevity in the US is lower than other industrialized countries in large part because our young people are dying at such high rates by guns, the number one killer of American youth. Guns outpaced motor vehicle deaths since 2020. Our overall longevity is impacted by so many of our children dying.
To say “don’t die” in this context sounds to me like the height of arrogance, hubris, privilege-- and ignorance of the global death drive that is gaining force and power.
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