Skip to content
U.S. Transhumanist Party – Official Website
  • Home
  • Posts
  • Values
  • Platform
  • Leadership
  • Advisors
  • Candidates
  • Highlights
  • FAQ
  • States & Allies
  • Free Membership
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Search Icon

U.S. Transhumanist Party – Official Website

U.S. Transhumanist Party – PUTTING SCIENCE, HEALTH, & TECHNOLOGY AT THE FOREFRONT OF AMERICAN POLITICS

Crass Transit – Editorial by Zach Richardson

Crass Transit – Editorial by Zach Richardson

December 16, 2021 Zach Richardson Comments 0 Comment

Zach Richardson


Life expectancy is a statistical phenomenon. You could still be hit by the proverbial bus tomorrow.

-Ray Kurzweil

Author’s Note:Β I have a sharp opinion on this topic that should not be taken to be any sort of official position of the USTP.

~ Zach Richardson, Director of Publication, United States Transhumanist Party, December 2021


It truly baffles me that Congress has decided to allocate such a large sum in the recent infrastructure bill towards local mass-transit systems. How is it not seen that ridesharing trumps mass-transit in every possible way (except in SOME cases, price)? Transhumanist policy means ruthlessly advocating usage of our public funds be based on sound reasoning and judgment. As the necessity of congregating in centralized office buildings becomes both unnecessary (due to remote work) and dangerous (due to COVID and any other unforeseen pandemics), mass transit needs to be phased out in favor of ridesharing.

Ridesharing is:

1. More environmentally friendly: Buses take a huge amount of fuel and are often running at only partial capacity. This is an issue all transhumanists should consider, as the climate situation is becoming more urgent.

2. Safer: not having to walk to and from a stopping point means less time in the open, which may or may not be a concern in larger cities. You are also less susceptible to the spread of disease when not congregating in one large, enclosed space with dozens of others.

3. Faster: no frequent stops to let more passengers on/off the vehicle.

4. More convenient: You can summon a vehicle when you are ready to go, instead of having to build a schedule around when the mass-transit system is operating. Most vehicles spend 95% of their time parked anyway.

5.Β Point-to-Point: No going out of your way and taking odd connecting lines between different systems that take you out of the route. This is an era where technology needs to serve us, not vice-versa, and that means direct connections. Leave hub-and-spoke to airlines (until we have personal jets)

There used to be a concept called “creative destruction” in the economy, wherein a dying industry was allowed to let die, and we need to revitalize this principle. Imagine how bizarre it would seem to be subsidizing telegram delivery services in 2021. Well, allocating public funds for (now) inefficient methods of transportation is just as bizarre.

The sudden plunge in ridership during the pandemic led, of course, to calls for “emergency” funding – for example, in the American Public Transport Association’s July 2021 policy brief. Why was Blackberry not granted emergency funding when sales of its eponymous device declined? Because of the lack of “emergency” funding for that company (despite facing the same consequences of lack of revenue, layoffs, etc.), it was forced to restructure its organization and transform into a successful cybersecurity company, providing a service that is extremely critical to a Transhumanist future. Public transit should have to do the same.

We should not be mired down with hokey ideals of helping the underprivileged when a better system exists for those of any amount of means. Perhaps not making the underprivileged transit experience an hour-long ride in uncomfortable conditions 5 days per week could be a good start. If funding is needed to continue to support that population segment, let it be redirected from less technologically and logistically sound programs to more forward-thinking ones. We could cut the funding for buses and rather than food stamps have “transportation stamps” – a QR code that would give the recipients a hefty discount.

The people of the city deserve this.

Zach Richardson is the Director of Publication of the U.S. Transhumanist Party.


Guest Articles
Blackberry, Climate Change, convenience, COVID-19, creative destruction, infrastructure, mass transit, public transport, remote work, ridesharing, Zach Richardson

Post navigation

PREVIOUS
Report on the International Colloquium “Njoh-MouellΓ© and Transhumanism in Africa” – by Siba Tcha-Mouza
NEXT
Introduction to “Fight Aging!” – Article by Reason

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Social Media

Constitution of the U.S. Transhumanist Party

Transhumanist Bill of Rights – Version 3.0

U.S. Transhumanist Party Facebook Feed

Victor Run Virtual Race – June 4-6, 2021

Free Transhumanist Symbols

Guidelines for Community Conduct

SUBMIT A POST

Recent Posts

  • U.S. Transhumanist Party Virtual Enlightenment Salon with Mark Hamalainen – June 12, 2022
  • U.S. Transhumanist Party Virtual Enlightenment Salon with Sharif Uddin Ahmed Rana – June 19, 2022
  • U.S. Transhumanist Party Virtual Enlightenment Salon with Kai Micah Mills – June 26, 2022
  • Transhuman Club Launch – U.S. Transhumanist Party Virtual Enlightenment Salon – July 3, 2022
  • Debate: Should US/NATO Support Immediate Negotiated Peace in Ukraine? – Nathan Boyd & Maty Aksenton – July 10, 2022
  • Transhumanist Party / World Talent Economy Forum Debates: AI and Space Colonization – December 24 and 31, 2021
  • The First 3 Transhumanist Party Enlightenment Salons – Highlights (2017-2018)
  • U.S. Transhumanist Party Virtual Enlightenment Salon with Fred Zhang of LongevityDAO – July 31, 2022
  • U.S. Transhumanist Party Enlightenment Salon on CureDAO: Lukas Vogel, Andreas Melhede, Mike P. Sinn – August 7, 2022
  • U.S. Transhumanist Party Enlightenment Salon with James Strole – Pursuing Immortality – August 14, 2022
  • β€œBreak the Rules” / U.S. Transhumanist Party Discussion on Artificial Intelligence & Transhumanism – July 1, 2022
  • U.S. Transhumanist Party Virtual Enlightenment Salon with Jules Hamilton – August 28, 2022
  • U.S. Transhumanist Party Virtual Enlightenment Salon with Mati Roy – September 4, 2022
  • The Fourth and Fifth Transhumanist Party Enlightenment Salons – Highlights
  • U.S. Transhumanist Party Report from Longevity Summit Dublin – Day 1 – September 18, 2022
  • U.S. Transhumanist Party Virtual Enlightenment Salon with Daniel Twedt – September 25, 2022
  • U.S. Transhumanist Party Virtual Enlightenment Salon with Sophie Jones – October 2, 2022
  • U.S. Transhumanist Party Virtual Enlightenment Salon with Simon Waslander – October 9, 2022
  • U.S. Transhumanist Party Virtual Enlightenment Salon with Jason Mallory – October 16, 2022
  • U.S. Transhumanist Party Virtual Enlightenment Salon with Eric Hennigan – October 23, 2022

Recent Comments

  • Dan Kilian on Benefit for U.S. Transhumanist Party Members: Discounts Offered for Treatments from AmpliCell Medical
  • Cheryl Knepper on The U.S. Transhumanist Party Endorses Daniel E. Twedt for City Council in Thousand Oaks, California
  • Carlos on U.S. Transhumanist Party Vote on the Question of Endorsing Daniel E. Twedt for City Council in Thousand Oaks, California
  • Gennady Stolyarov II on Constitution of the New York Transhumanist Party
  • Daniel on U.S. Transhumanist Party Vote on the Question of Endorsing Daniel E. Twedt for City Council in Thousand Oaks, California

Archives

  • February 2023 (11)
  • January 2023 (24)
  • December 2022 (2)
  • November 2022 (2)
  • October 2022 (3)
  • August 2022 (3)
  • July 2022 (2)
  • May 2022 (6)
  • March 2022 (3)
  • February 2022 (4)
  • January 2022 (7)
  • December 2021 (11)
  • November 2021 (4)
  • October 2021 (5)
  • September 2021 (2)
  • August 2021 (2)
  • July 2021 (4)
  • June 2021 (2)
  • May 2021 (6)
  • April 2021 (7)
  • March 2021 (4)
  • February 2021 (5)
  • January 2021 (6)
  • December 2020 (10)
  • November 2020 (4)
  • October 2020 (2)
  • September 2020 (1)
  • August 2020 (4)
  • July 2020 (5)
  • June 2020 (6)
  • May 2020 (3)
  • April 2020 (3)
  • March 2020 (6)
  • February 2020 (1)
  • January 2020 (6)
  • December 2019 (3)
  • November 2019 (2)
  • October 2019 (9)
  • September 2019 (10)
  • August 2019 (12)
  • July 2019 (18)
  • June 2019 (17)
  • May 2019 (12)
  • April 2019 (8)
  • March 2019 (12)
  • February 2019 (7)
  • January 2019 (13)
  • December 2018 (9)
  • November 2018 (5)
  • October 2018 (9)
  • September 2018 (5)
  • August 2018 (10)
  • July 2018 (13)
  • June 2018 (14)
  • May 2018 (8)
  • April 2018 (8)
  • March 2018 (10)
  • February 2018 (15)
  • January 2018 (17)
  • December 2017 (8)
  • November 2017 (17)
  • October 2017 (19)
  • September 2017 (11)
  • August 2017 (11)
  • July 2017 (16)
  • June 2017 (15)
  • May 2017 (10)
  • April 2017 (7)
  • March 2017 (8)
  • February 2017 (16)
  • January 2017 (8)
  • December 2016 (6)
  • November 2016 (5)

Categories

  • Allied Projects
  • Announcements
  • Art
  • Candidates
  • Discussion Panels
  • Distributed Computing
  • Exposure Periods
  • Foreign Ambassadors
  • General Discussion
  • Guest Articles
  • Inclusion
  • Interviews
  • Official Ballots
  • Petitions
  • Platform
  • Presentations
  • Press Releases
  • Research
  • Sample Ballots
  • Science Fiction
  • Statements
  • Tolerance
  • Virtual Enlightenment Salons
  • Vote Results
  • Working Groups
© 2023   Copyright - U.S. Transhumanist Party - All Rights Reserved | WordPress design: Art Ramon Paintings