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Archive for the ‘geopolitics’ category: Page 7

Sep 29, 2020

Medical historian compares the coronavirus to the 1918 flu pandemic: Both were highly political

Posted by in categories: biotech/medical, geopolitics, health, treaties

Additionally, some reports have suggested that then-President Woodrow Wilson downplayed the virus, but that is a “wrong and a false trope of popular history,” Markel said. Wilson, who would later contract the virus, was organizing and commanding the U.S. effort in World War I and once the war ended, he sailed for Paris, where he stayed until April of 1919 organizing a peace treaty and the League of Nations, Markel said.

“The federal government played a very small role in American public health during that era. It was primarily a city and state role and those agencies were hardly downplaying it,” he said.

Unlike today, there was no CDC or national public health department. The Food and Drug Administration existed but consisted of a very small group of men. Additionally, there were no antibiotics, intensive care units, ventilators, IV fluids or vaccines. “You got a bed or maybe nursing care,” Markel said.

Aug 25, 2020

Russia to continue bilateral dialogue with US on all space issues

Posted by in categories: geopolitics, military, space, treaties

Spokeswoman for Russia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs Maria Zakharova, said at a briefing on Thursday that Russia is ready to continue to discuss space issues with the US. This discussion should operate within the framework of a bilateral expert group, commenting on the publication of the US Space Force doctrine by the Pentagon.

“The document confirms the aggressive direction of Washington in the sphere of space, the determination to achieve military superiority up to the total dominance in space. The outer space is considered by the American side exclusively as the arena to conduct warfare,” she said. “We see an opportunity to remove mutual concerns within the framework of the Russian-American working group on space security whose first meeting took place in Vienna on July 27 and we confirm our readiness to discuss further all issues of space activities in the bilateral format,” the diplomat added. The spokeswoman drew attention to the fact that the use of space research exclusively in peaceful purposes remains a priority for Russia as well as prevention of an arms race in outer space. “As opposed to the US, we do not pursue the goals of domineering and superiority. We are interested instead in maintaining the strategic balance in order to strengthen the international security.” She referred to the Russian-Chinese treaty draft on the prevention of stationing arms in space, use of force or threats against space objects. All existing issues and contradictions on the subject of arms in space should be resolved within the framework of the Disarmament Conference, the spokeswoman stressed. According to her, Russia thoroughly analyzes the possible consequences of “Washington’s aggressive endeavors.”


Spokeswoman for Russia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs Maria Zakharova, said at a briefing on Thursday that Russia is ready to continue to discuss space issues with the US. This discussion should operate within the framework of a bilateral expert group, commenting on the publication of the US Space Force doctrine by the Pentagon.

Continue reading “Russia to continue bilateral dialogue with US on all space issues” »

Aug 17, 2020

33 Crucial Terms Every Futurist, Transhumanist, and Philosopher Should Know Going Forward

Posted by in categories: ethics, existential risks, geopolitics, life extension, neuroscience, robotics/AI, singularity, transhumanism

We can’t evolve faster than our language does. Evolution is a linguistic, code-theoretic process. Do yourself a humongous favor, look over these 33 transhumanist neologisms. Here’s a fairly comprehensive glossary of thirty three newly-introduced concepts and terms from “The Syntellect Hypothesis: Five Paradigms of the Mind’s Evolution” by futurist, philosopher and evolutionary cyberneticist Alex M. Vikoulov. In parts written as an academic paper, in parts as a belletristic masterpiece, this recent book is an exceptionally easy read for an intellectual reader — a philosophical treatise that is fine-tuned with apt neologisms readily explained by given definitions and contextually… https://medium.com/@alexvikoulov/33-crucial-terms-every-futu…a1c8b993c8

#evolution #consciousness #futurism #transhumanism #philosophy


“A powerful work! As a transhumanist, I especially loved one of the main ideas of the book that the Syntellect Emergence, merging of us into one Global Mind, constitutes the quintessence of the coming Technological Singularity. The novel conceptual visions of mind-uploading and achieving digital immortality are equally fascinating. The Chrysalis Conjecture as a solution to the Fermi Paradox is mind-bending. I would highly recommend The Syntellect Hypothesis to anyone with transhumanist aspirations and exponential thinking!” -Zoltan Istvan, futurist, author, founder of the U.S. Transhumanist Party

Continue reading “33 Crucial Terms Every Futurist, Transhumanist, and Philosopher Should Know Going Forward” »

Aug 10, 2020

Another nation ratifies UN nuclear ban treaty

Posted by in categories: geopolitics, military, treaties

Saint Kitts and Nevis became the 44th country to ratify the UN Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons on Sunday, the 75th anniversary of the US atomic bombing on the Japanese city of Nagasaki. Six more ratifications are now needed to bring the treaty into force.

The Caribbean nation’s foreign minister, Mark Brantley, said in a statement that the bombing of Nagasaki was the apogee of human cruelty and inhumanity.

He said his country, as a small nation committed to global peace, can see no useful purpose for nuclear armaments. He called on all nations to work towards peace and mutual respect for all mankind.

Aug 5, 2020

Twitter hackers who targeted Elon Musk and others received $121,000 in bitcoin, analysis shows

Posted by in categories: bitcoin, cryptocurrencies, cybercrime/malcode, Elon Musk, geopolitics

Victims included Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden, former President Barack Obama and Tesla CEO Elon Musk. Accounts for those people, and others, posted tweets asking followers to send bitcoin to a specific anonymous address.

For their efforts, the scammers received over 400 payments in bitcoin, with a total value of $121,000 at Thursday’s exchange rate, according to an analysis of the Bitcoin blockchain performed by Elliptic, a cryptocurrency compliance firm.

Elliptic co-founder Tom Robinson said it’s a low sum for what appears to be a historic hack that Twitter said involved an insider.

Aug 4, 2020

Researchers: help free the world of nuclear weapons

Posted by in categories: geopolitics, law, military, treaties

One idea, which has been in gestation for some years, could be about to have its break-out moment. A new agreement, the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW), is expected to become international law next year — and scientists have a chance to play a part in helping it to succeed.


Seventy-five years after the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, a new treaty offers renewed hope for a nuclear-free world.

Jun 25, 2020

Immortality Or Bust: Transhumanism In The White House

Posted by in categories: biotech/medical, geopolitics, military, policy, transhumanism

Leading futurist Tracey Follows has written an article at Forbes on #transhumanism documentary IMMORTALITY OR BUST. Check it out!


Zoltan has a more radical idea of change than almost anything else you are seeing on your TV screens today but the mainstream media continue to miss him. That’s why it’s good to see he has made his own documentary film explaining to a broader audience what he’s doing, how it all works, and why they should be interested in transhumanism at all.

Continue reading “Immortality Or Bust: Transhumanism In The White House” »

Jun 23, 2020

Beyond 2030: David A. Kekich on Working Towards Biological Superlongevity

Posted by in categories: biotech/medical, geopolitics, life extension, neuroscience, transhumanism

In “2030: Beyond the Film” Director Johnny Boston discusses the futurist FM-2030, the Coronavirus Pandemic, and a range of urgent issues in the medical, philosophical, longevity & futurist space with leading voices.

In this episode, Boston talks with David A. Kekich on why Kekich believes working towards Biological Superlongevity should be the first goal of Transhumanists and futurists.

Continue reading “Beyond 2030: David A. Kekich on Working Towards Biological Superlongevity” »

Jun 23, 2020

Image Shows Russian Submarine Appearing To Break International Treaty

Posted by in categories: biotech/medical, geopolitics, treaties

A Russian submarine passed through Turkey on Tuesday, in an apparent breach of the longstanding Montreux Convention, which prohibits submarines from moving between the Black Sea and the Mediterranean. If the move goes unchecked it could change the balance of power in the region, making Russia more powerful in the Mediterranean.

The submarine was photographed by Yörük Işık, a highly respected ship spotter who lives in Istanbul. There is no mistaking that this is a Kilo Class submarine. Only Russia operates this type of submarine in the Black Sea. Romania also has a sole example on its lists but that hasn’t been active in decades so it cannot be that.

More specifically, the submarine is likely to be the Project 636.3 boat Rostov-on-Don, heading to take up duty in Syria. Russian state media reported on April 27 that the sub would be dispatched on a “deployment in distant waters” to the Mediterranean. Analysis of open-source intelligence suggests that she put to sea briefly after the announcement but then returned to her base on April 29. This was likely to start a pre-deployment COVID-19 isolation. She then participated in the Victory Day parade in Sevastopol, Crimea. She did not actually head south toward the Mediterranean until now.

Jun 9, 2020

Imagining safety zones: Implications and open questions

Posted by in categories: geopolitics, law, policy, space travel, treaties

In May, NASA announced its intent to “establish a common set of principles to govern the civil exploration and use of outer space” referred to as the Artemis Accords.[1,2] The Accords were released initially as draft principles, to be developed and implemented through a series of bilateral agreements with international partners.

The Accords offer the possibility to advance practical implementations of long-held principles in the Outer Space Treaty (OST). They raise a rich set of policy questions as we begin to take the law into new levels of resolution. This bold pursuit of uncharted territories is to be applauded, and yet, there is also the risk of diverging from 53 years of international law.

One the ten principles is focused on Deconfliction of Activities, with “safety zones” named as a specific mechanism of implementation:

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