What would you do if you could live to 200 years old?

Musings on a world where everyone can live forever (almost)

Once humans began to figure out that death is inevitable they started to search for magic elixirs that would at least allow them to live longer, if not forever. Now why would you want to live forever? I don’t, so I wonder about those who do and what they are thinking.

Let us say that STEM experts work it out in our lifetime to put a stop to all diseases with cures and prevention, reverse or avert anomalies at birth that prevent normal development, and reverse aging for those already ill or “old.” What would our world look like?

Perhaps we are not thinking about the world but only ourselves, wanting to have lots of fun experiences, see the world and even outer space, and continue with great health forever. Beneath the surface of this quest is the desire to avoid suffering and death itself. Countless things make us suffer, most of them out of our control.

So how would we suffer less if we could live onward through many decades with top physical and mental health?

Would wars cease? Would dictators stop dictating? Would religious and political factions come to peaceful coexistence? Would climate cooperate and stop flooding, fires, hurricanes and tornadoes? Could the planet accommodate the growth of many more billions? I don’t think so.

Would everyone qualify and afford the elixirs, enjoy the benefits that bring emotional and psychological stability as well? Would everyone have to maintain employment to continuously support their physical lives? Or would there even still be employment opportunities when robotics and AI have taken over many or most jobs?

Would the poor become more poor and enslaved in service to the wealthy? Would the wealthy scheme harder to eliminate the poor so that they don’t have to bother with how to help them?

What about relationships in adulthood during these many decades of long life? Would women continue to bear children into their 100’s and have multiple families who have families who have families? Could anyone keep track of all the descendants they bear? What would become of marriage, divorce, paternity, familial connections, celebrations and traditions?

Good physical and mental health are not all there is to well-being and enjoyment while living. I know that those who are suffering and cannot escape it would not want it to go on forever, risking a promise that all can be healed.

I am full of gratitude to be so fortunate to have decent health and reasonable mental clarity in my seventh decade. I still suffer anyway from sadness for the many things not going well in the world that cannot be cured with physical and mental health for everyone. Until those things can improve, I will relax in the peace and good fortune I have, without longing for more.

You can check out more of my musings on life, beliefs, suffering, and death at https://medium.com/@klyn864