[vineyardmike]

Immortality sounds horrible if and only if I'm the only one immortal.

Most people don't want to die. I want to learn more, and indulge curiosity for another day. I want to laugh and love and see my family forever longer - I don't think I'd ever wish to leave my loved ones, and I will unsurprisingly mourn their loss. I assume I'm not particularly special in any of this...

I think the sudden onset of immortality (especially concentrated on the wealthy) will be catastrophic for society. Imagine Bezos or a Kardashian or someone politically motivated like Murdoch/Soros but immortal? Imagine them being able to spend (and grow) generations of wealth... for generation?

For the rest of us, the cost of an opportunity to be immortal will be massive because of course it can be. People today save for retirement, but one day they may save for immortality - or perhaps take out insane loans to fund it. Imagine real estate prices when banks can offer 100y mortgages to a class of rich immortal workers? Imagine trying to advance in your career when someone can get a senior job and work for hundreds of years, especially if they need to fund their 100y mortgage or their immortality procedure - Millennials already complain that boomers won't retire and open up the higher-rung jobs.

Immortality would upend society, and likely exacerbate social tensions, but it could also be a great reset in social expectations. Maybe it'd encourage everyone to take a long-term view of their actions. eg. Climate change would impact everyone, so no one would be "too old to care".