U.S. Transhumanist Party – Official Website

Gennady Stolyarov II

When I first became Chairman of the U.S. Transhumanist Party on November 17, 2016, Donald Trump was about to become President of the United States. Now, as I mark the eight-year anniversary of my Chairman role, Donald Trump is about to become President of the United States. This most certainly feels a bit like a déjà vu experience – but perhaps more as a variation on a theme than an exact repetition. Despite several areas of clear technological progress (e.g., generative AI, mRNA vaccines, space travel, and some medical advances), I do not consider the world today to be better than the world of November 2016. Societally, culturally, and materially, humankind has endured much – generally pointlessly – during the past eight years and especially during the past five years, only to find itself in quite a similar situation politically, but with more damage done, more nerves frayed, more division and polarization, more friendships and relationships ruined, more blind, irrational tribalism that refuses to see the “other side” (as well as those erroneously lumped into the “other side”) as quite human – not to mention more deaths in horrific wars that were entirely avoidable and that raise a specter of existential risk over our civilization, far greater than any risk that artificial intelligence could ever pose. Yet significant hope remains – and transhumanism is the crucial reason why this is so.

The 2024 U.S. Presidential Election – similar to the elections in France, Germany, and the United Kingdom – was an anti-status-quo election. The candidate and the party most seeming to represent the status quo in the minds of the voters lost. Any party seen as opposing the status quo or offering an alternative – no matter what the alternative – won, as long as it was seen as “having a chance of winning”. Given the duopolistic trap in the United States – which has been thoroughly inculcated into the voters by the elites of both major political parties – the voters who rejected the status quo ended up supporting… the status quo, but in a different guise and of a different flavor, and couched in irreverent, populistic rhetoric.  Most American voters – as well as voters in Western countries generally – sense that almost every major aspect of contemporary society is deeply broken, but they have neither the vocabulary to describe it nor a coherent set of solutions to address the root causes of the problems that pervade our lives. Nor do they have the toolkit of thought and action to resist the many pitfalls that the duopoly places in their way.

Really, what is broken is the Postmodern Era, which has characterized the Western world substantially since World War I and overwhelmingly since World War II. The Postmodern Era deprived most ordinary, non-philosophically-inclined people of a sense of overarching meaning and purpose in life – deconstructing prior “narratives” and thought systems and replacing them with the cynical identity politics of victims and oppressors, “our tribe” versus “their tribe” – where anything goes and any low tactic is permitted because there are no objective, universalizable standards of goodness, decency, or progress to aspire toward. For some time, especially in the two decades after World War II and again in the mid-1980s through September 11, 2001, humanity was able to “coast” forward on the fuel of accumulated scientific and technological progress and the material infrastructure that it enabled. But now our material infrastructure is decaying, and science and technology have come under attack by “degrowth” types on the Left and “all-natural” types on the Right – or the Robert Kennedy, Jr. types who fuse the two mentalities. Life-expectancy growth stagnated in the West and experienced a major reversal during the COVID pandemic, but in the United States, life expectancy for middle-aged Caucasian residents was already declining prior to COVID, due to “deaths of despair” – brought about by substance abuse fueled ultimately by a crisis of meaning.

For most people in the Western world, the sense that they are living lives of abundance and prosperity has disappeared, even as we continue to benefit from amazing technological advances. Generative AI, which has been truly the most impressive advance of the past decade and a half (ever since the emergence of smartphones), has generated a fear-driven backlash instead of seeing a hope-driven adoption (although a more pragmatic, unheralded, de facto type of adoption is beginning to occur). But without a philosophical foundation of hope for a better future, the majority of people will continue to interpret any advancement in a cynical light and will fail to find the opportunities amidst an era of change. In its dying throes, the Postmodern Era aims to drag us all down, as its paradigmatic institutions make the costs of basic goods and services – including housing and healthcare – expensive and beyond the reach of many, as they destroy social ties and networks of mutual support by means of propaganda that brainwashes ordinary people to view other ordinary people as evil, as they foster a pervasive demonization and “cancellation” of anybody who dares to actually offer an unconventional solution to the problems of the contemporary world.

There have been some efforts to resist the Postmodern dysfunction and the attempts at monolithic control by the Postmodern Era’s institutions. Indeed, the recent election results could be understood in some sense as the majority of voters selecting a somewhat more heterodox party, one that fits the Postmodern propaganda a little less well in some respects, even as it epitomizes the Postmodern, post-truth, identity-politics mentality in others. Other minor parties and political figures have attempted to take more constructive stands – for instance, Chase Oliver and Mike ter Maat of the Libertarian Party, who ran a principled campaign that articulately espoused the values of individual liberty and limited government. They did this despite being undermined by the leadership of their own party, who preferred a capitulation to Trump and RFK, Jr. – a leadership that did everything it could to deprive its own candidates of resources and support. Another example is the Forward Party, which has worked to elect solutions-oriented candidates to local and State offices, while advocating for ranked-choice voting – an essential electoral reform in the view of the USTP. However, it is clear that the Libertarian Party is in persistent disarray and further along the trajectory of splitting into outright Trumpists and “Democrats-lite” – an unfortunate dynamic that I had already observed as early as 2016. The Forward Party, while it continues to support worthwhile reforms, has been gutted of its former, more substantive platform that stemmed from the ideas of Andrew Yang. In an effort to encompass anyone and everyone dissatisfied with the duopoly, including some prominent establishment figures who might not favor some of Yang’s more innovative and unconventional ideas, the Forward Party now stands for much less than it originally did, or could have.

There is only one political party in the United States that stands for a completely new paradigm of human history in a philosophically rigorous and consistent manner. This is the U.S. Transhumanist Party, which seeks to replace the Postmodern Era with the Transhuman Era – an era where a sense of meaning and of the desirability of progress can be rekindled, where the improvement of the human condition – the defeat of death, disease, scarcity, pointless conflict – an overcoming of the forces of ruin – can be pursued with confidence and dedication. It was, in retrospect, an immense stroke of good fortune that I was able to assume the leadership role of the U.S. Transhumanist Party in November 2016, when I would have otherwise become politically homeless, and likely retired from politics altogether, seeing no hope for political activity otherwise. The Transhumanist Party offers hope to those who wish to be principled and to build a future where humans can indeed overcome the perils that have plagued us ever since our species and our societies came to be. Just as I found a political home in the USTP, and thousands of others have since – so can you – but remember that we do stand for some quite definite ideas, as expressed in our Core Ideals and Values, our Platform, and the Transhumanist Bill of Rights, Version 3.0.  We are neither left-wing, nor right-wing, but up-wing (to use the terminology of the great proto-transhumanist, FM-2030). We seek anyone who actually wishes to solve problems and build a better future, instead of simply fighting “the other side”, escalating tensions, and becoming mired in trench warfare over the wedge issues of the day.

Ross-Twedt Presidential Campaign

The definite highlight of the past two years of USTP activity has been our Presidential campaign. Our ticket of Tom Ross for President and Daniel Twedt for Vice-President has generated a wealth of conversations, interviews, campaign videos, graphics – all aimed at getting Americans and humans generally to think about how we can respond constructively to immense changes that are arising economically, technologically, and socially. Tom Ross and Daniel Twedt followed in the footsteps (or the Immortality Bus tracks) of Zoltan Istvan in 2016 and Charlie Kam and Liz Parrish in 2020 and stayed true to the intention of running a highly creative marketing campaign for the ideas of transhumanism.

For a distillation of many of the key messages of the Ross-Twedt campaign, I would encourage you to view our compilation of campaign graphics and videos, which illustrate the clear ways in which the USTP stood apart and remained above the fray with its messaging, instead providing actionable insights that people of any party and any political orientation can utilize to thrive in the coming future.

We are still in the process of tabulating the votes that have been cast for Tom Ross and/or Daniel Twedt, who also ran for the fourth time for City Council in Thousand Oaks, California. As of November 17, 2024, we are aware of 566 votes that have been cast for either or both of our candidates. Watch this page for the updated vote counts as new information comes in – and if you wrote in Tom Ross and Daniel Twedt during the 2024 General Election, please let us know that you did so at ustranshumanistparty@protonmail.com.

We are exceptionally grateful to each and every Transhumanist voter who defied the persistent messaging of the duopoly and wrote our candidates in. What is most important to us is the opportunity to spread transhumanist ideas and to have engaged great minds in the process – great minds such as those of our courageous members who chose to take a stand for principles and vote their consciences. We in the USTP are honored by every single vote cast for our candidates!

Innovative Uses of Artificial Intelligence

We ourselves have been harnessing the recent advances in generative AI technology to a significant extent and hope to do much more in this realm. Our Virtual Enlightenment Salon of November 3, 2024, immediately preceding the U.S. Presidential Election, was narrated by two AI hosts from Google’s NotebookLM, who quite insightfully and relatably discussed the USTP’s goals and the Tom Ross campaign.

Indeed, there is no political party that has embraced generative AI nearly to the extent that the USTP has in producing an outpouring of art, music, and graphic design during the past two years. We are not only the party that advocates for emerging technology; we are the party at the forefront of using it! There is now even an AI chatbot designed by our friend Jeffrey Zilahy of the Risk Averse Technology Company, where one can ask questions specific to the USTP and receive answers based on the information on our website. You can find it and experiment with it at https://www.transhumanism-ai.com/thdir/index.

Moreover, this transhumanist skyscraper was generated via the DALL-E 3 AI on the occasion of the 8^th anniversary of my tenure as Chairman of the USTP.

Our efforts to apply artificial intelligence to amplify the message of transhumanism are only beginning. Be on the lookout for many more developments to come!

Membership Growth and Volunteering

At present, USTP membership has exceeded 4,600 and continues to grow almost daily. We continue to make it as easy as possible for interested individuals to join. Membership is free and will always remain so, and our online application form takes less than a minute to fill out.

Beyond member signups, we continue to seek active volunteers and will find roles for you if you wish to assist in spreading the ideas of transhumanism and advancing the projects of the USTP. As I wrote in my Sixth Anniversary Message, we seek people who would be willing to undertake projects, track legislation and write analyses, contribute articles to the USTP website, operate State-level Transhumanist Parties and local transhumanist meetups, and reach out to policymakers and the public with messaging that aligns with the USTP Platform and Values. Our FAQ and Action Items for New Members provide some basic ideas of what any member could do. Beyond that, please reach out to me with your own ideas and a description of your skill sets, and I would be happy to explore what it might be possible to achieve through our joint efforts.

Our attempts during the 2024 election season to attain ballot access in Louisiana and Tennessee showed that we need more transhumanists “on the ground” in each state to organize local events and efforts – such as petition drives – more effectively. While we did have dedicated volunteers in both of these states, thanks to the diligent work of Aida Ćemalović and Micah Redding – we ultimately fell short of having a person willing to serve as a Presidential Elector in each Congressional District. This speaks to the need of cultivating a robust Transhumanist presence in every area of the country – urban or rural – and finding ways to spread our message so as to resonate with the goals and values of those who reside there, while showing them new possibilities for a brighter future.

Celebration of the USTP’s 10^th Anniversary

2024 was a year of multiple major milestones for the USTP. We celebrated our 10^th anniversary on October 7, 2024, with a special Virtual Enlightenment Salon to mark the occasion one day early on October 6. It was quite a remarkable occasion to have so many of the key figures in the Transhumanist Party’s history present within the same stream.

Zoltan Istvan, the USTP’s Founder and 2016 Presidential candidate, expressed pride in the party’s survival and its continued participation in presidential elections, raising awareness of transhumanist ideas. He highlighted the increasing relevance of transhumanism, especially in light of advancements in AI, although he lamented that AI is advancing at a faster rate than the technologies of life extension, and this disparity urgently needs to be addressed. Zoltan stressed that science and technology are the keys to achieving radical life extension and a better future for humanity

I, in turn, emphasized the high quality of discourse within the party, attributing it to the caliber of its members. I also acknowledged the USTP’s goal of shifting the political conversation towards transhumanist concerns rather than solely focusing on winning elections.

Charlie Kam, the USTP’s 2020 Presidential candidate, noted the growing acceptance of transhumanist ideas, particularly among younger generations familiar with AI and other advanced technologies. He expressed optimism about the potential for a stronger third party in American politics, with the U.S. Transhumanist Party well-positioned to fill that role.

Liz Parrish, the USTP’s 2020 Vice-Presidential candidate, stressed the importance of moving beyond traditional political debates and focusing on scientific solutions to global challenges, especially those related to health and aging. She argued that society should embrace, not blacklist, innovative technologies like genetic engineering, which hold the key to improving human lives and saving the planet.

Dr. Bill Andrews, the USTP’s Biotechnology Advisor and one of our earliest supporters, shared his passion for extending and enhancing lifespans, advocating for progress in areas like whole-brain emulation and robotic caregiving to address the needs of an aging population. He expressed concern about the “silver tsunami,” a situation where a rapidly aging population will outnumber those capable of providing care, urging the development of solutions like in-home robotic caregivers.

Tom Ross, the USTP’s 2024 Presidential candidate, focused on alleviating fears surrounding AI, arguing that advanced AI will move towards cooperation and become kinder, not more threatening. He also shared his experiences engaging with individuals who harbor fears and conspiracy theories surrounding transhumanism, advocating for open conversations to dispel misconceptions and demonstrate the positive aspects of the movement.

Daniel Twedt, the USTP’s 2024 Vice-Presidential candidate, echoed Tom Ross’s sentiments, emphasizing the potential for AI to enhance human capabilities and contribute to the evolution of a new species, “Cosmos Sapiens,” capable of expanding beyond Earth. He advocated for cryonics as a potential bridge to a future where AI and other technologies can address the problem of biological aging.

Art Ramon Garcia, Jr., the USTP Director of Visual Art, underscored the importance of artistic expression in conveying the transhumanist message, arguing that art can reach audiences in ways that science and technology alone cannot. He also emphasized the personal impact of transhumanist ideas, sharing his own experiences with aging and his hopes for technological solutions to address the physical limitations that come with age.

Dr. Jose Cordeiro, the USTP’s Technology Advisor, highlighted international transhumanist efforts, discussing his work in Spain, including a march for longevity and the TransVision Madrid conference. The idea of a march for longevity in Washington, D.C., which was first announced at RAADfest in Anaheim, California, in September 2024, was enthusiastically supported by various participants, who saw it as a powerful way to increase visibility and demonstrate public support for radical life extension

Overall, the U.S. Transhumanist Party’s 10th-anniversary celebration provided an occasion for reflecting on the party’s accomplishments, highlighting key areas of focus, and outlining a vision for the future. The discussions reflected the USTP’s commitment to promoting transhumanist ideas, advocating for radical life extension, addressing the ethical and societal implications of AI, and engaging in public discourse to foster understanding and support for the movement. The celebration underscored the importance of public outreach and engagement and also touched on the importance of cross-generational collaboration, with each of the participants emphasizing the need to engage younger generations and leverage their familiarity with technology to advance transhumanist goals.

I encourage you to visit our post dedicated to our 10^th-anniversary celebration, where you will also find the excellent and inspiring art generated by our members for the occasion.

The longevity of the USTP thus far will enable us to more readily continue our work in spreading the ideas of transhumanism and advocating for emerging scientific and technological breakthroughs to help humankind to finally overcome the forces of ruin. Numerous projects and initiatives are in progress and will be announced in the year to come – even as we work to formulate the best responses of the U.S. Transhumanist Party to the current societal and political predicaments facing Americans and the world at large.

I am hopeful that, despite the turmoil that has intensified since 2016, many opportunities for a brighter Transhumanist future remain – and some of the paths toward such a future will become clearly discernible soon. I plan to share much more in the coming months as we make progress along these paths, and I invite all of you to become involved in making the Transhumanist future a reality.

Live long and prosper!