127. Transhumanism 5/28: The Problem

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Those rational individuals who, driven by profit and power, occupy themselves with the mechanization of man, should realize that their knowledge is still far too deficient to create a perfect human-machine. For instance, today we cannot even say when the human heart first beats, nor exactly when it stops. We do not know the moment of our conception, nor the exact point from which we can be considered alive. Even today, we have only assumptions of what life and existence truly are, what space and time signify, what relationship we have with our external physical world and our inner world, or what universal messages we carry within ourselves and within the unity (coherence) of the heart and brain. Despite this vast ignorance, we already want to become machines. It is no coincidence that the profit-hungry and ignorant proponents of transhumanism fail to consider that transhumanism:

1. Harbors risks that have never existed before: the evidence of our humanity—such as our alertness and consciousness regarding participatory life, the coherent connection between our heart and brain, our relationship with our meaningful micro- and macro-worlds, and the messages within our DNA—is threatened by the application of miniature nanocircuits, artificial intelligence, genetic technologies, and mRNA vaccines. These technologies are evolving so rapidly that neither the authorities meant to regulate their use nor the editors of school and university textbooks can keep up. Thus, we are in a constant "trap situation" where, although techniques bring about "new times," our thinking about these technologies remains stuck in the old days. Misunderstandings of the advantages and disadvantages of technology often lead to the false notion that we are merely victims of these advancements. In this regard, school education suffer the most; young people find that the “reality" mediated by the internet and mobile phones does not appear in their formal education. Consequently, youth come to believe that their future depends entirely on computers, mobile phones, and artificial intelligence.

It is no accident that in Great Britain, for example, the generation aged 8–18 spends seven and a half hours a day in front of digital devices; 97% of twelve-year-olds and 25% of children under seven own a smartphone. With this attitude, young people effectively outsource problem-solving to the device, making everything dependent on what the machine communicates. If the message says it will rain today, but looking out the window the sun is shining, the machine is deemed right. Alongside technology and device-dependent behaviour, there are even greater risk factors stemming from the latest developments of tech companies: the implantation of computer chips into the brain and establishing wireless connections with iPads, smartphones, and computer hard drives, the implantation of Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) chips into the body, the injection of mRNA (messenger RNA) into the body, through which the immune system can be programmed to concentrate on a specific virus to prevent infections. All these transhumanist technologies go beyond what should be the task of the "created creator" human.

2. Aims to erase the natural traits of life: transhumanism seeks to eliminate physical illnesses, the passage of life’s time (which we call death), fatigue, reproduction, and so on, because it believes these are unnecessary. In its view, these human needs are "errors of nature" that must be corrected. Life must be made simpler, more predictable, and more goal-oriented—and machines can assist in this. What the representatives and spokespersons of transhumanism do not mention is that all of this is about the exercise of power, slavery, and above all, profit. According to them, it is a "flaw of nature" if we are happy, if we have emotions, if we fall in love with a woman or a man, if we reproduce, and finally, if we grow old.

Transhumanist spokespersons believe these human "imperfections" are "disturbing factors" from the machine's perspective, and they believe technologies are needed to "fix" nature's mistakes. They claim we can be saved from our pain, suffering, and anxieties to become happy. It is like we reading George Orwell’s 1984 or Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World. What the representatives of transhumanism fail to mention is that they are experimenting on us so that the "self-elected"—the representatives of the new digital religion—can attain "eternal happiness." Or those outside the ranks of the old and new "chosen ones" also have a chance to prosper?

3. Doing something simply because it can be done: we must ask the question: from whom and when did the supporters of transhumanism request permission or obtain the right to implant computer chips into the brain, to embed Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) chips into the human body, or to inject people with mRNA (messenger RNA) vaccines? The latter, for example, represents the hijacking and manipulation of our body’s natural immunity—or to put it another way: biological hacking, for which the Covid-19 case has already served as a precedent. Why do the representatives of transhumanism interfere with the universal order of nature to create imperfect systems and machines? Systems that must be kept running only because they would otherwise be waste, and because they represent the vast amounts of money developers have poured into them over the years. We must realize that we are groping in unknown territory.

4. Forgetting that we are designed so that if we do not use something, it atrophies, is lost, and withers away. Every single one of our cells, tissues, and organs was originally programmed to perform the functions entrusted to it. When we do not utilize these functions—that is, when we do not exercise our physical and mental capabilities, which can also be called adaptation—these abilities retreat and eventually vanish. For instance, if we stop continuous learning, the new neurons and connections formed through learning dissolve. The state known as aging is also about failing to utilize the potential within us; this is, for example, the cause of muscle atrophy.

A similar atrophy and withdrawal of our abilities can be observed if we entrust our physical, emotional, and perhaps spiritual potential to machines. If we "outsource" our intelligence, our capacity to adapt, and to learn. It is expected that we will decline in body, soul, and spirit alike. One example of this decline is a survey conducted among taxi drivers regarding the use of GPS. When taxi drivers did not have GPS devices, they knew the names of the city's streets by heart. Once they began using GPS, they forgot the street names or became uncertain about them within a short time. The same can be said for the phone numbers of a small town. There was a time when we knew them by heart; since mobile phones have stored them, we have forgotten those numbers.

According to Hajdu, the problem unfortunately does not stop here. The withering and loss of our inherent potentials, intelligences, and adaptive abilities are passed down to our children and grandchildren according to the rules of epigenetics. This is nothing less than a catastrophic loss of our capabilities and intelligence. If we do not pay attention and, in our quest for comfort, accept the "blessed charity" of transhumanism, we too contribute to the destruction of the capabilities of the created, sacred human being. Will we perhaps reach a point where the image and identity of the complete, meaningful "One" is merely a memory in the minds of future generations? What will humans be called then: Homo sapiens (wise man) or Homo digitalis (machine man)? There is a danger that if transhumanist ambitions are not responsibly regulated—for example, in defense of national interests, values, cultures, and traditions—we may lose the very characteristics that define us as human beings and as a nation.