Don't Die: Brian Johnson's Pseudo-Religion 

I think people assume we know a LOT more than we do. I work in healthcare and it's amazing how many things we literally just dont know. From mechanisms of action for medications to the etiology of diseases (look up idopathic diseases). We are so far from even understanding the mechanisms of aging that people just assume they dont exist and all we need to do is prevent our telomeres from shortening.

I’ve never seen people so afraid of dying in my entire life. I almost feel bad for them ….. bc they’re going to be panic stricken when the time comes

Thought this was going to be about ACDC's Brian Johnson. I'm a bit disappointed, but also relieved.

I encountered a book years ago "Live Long, (Not Live)* Fast" by John M Bland The idea behind the MD's advise was to live a healthy life with the direct goal of a mobile, active life in the last years. Then have a fast and painless as possible end. That health at all ages was worth it in order to genuinely live life. Then the goal would be to avoid a prolonged chronic or severe acute illness as the end process. Ideally enough health/strength would be left to allow the body to shut down in a self initiated process and largely painlessly. I have seen an otherwise healthy animal die of old age. The end was indeed reasonably short and nap filled. It's a fantastic attitude, IMO. I find the impulse to live forever understandable but creepy and stunning denial of reality. There is indeed much more evidence of an afterlife than anyone ever avoiding the other certainity of life besides taxes. *RU-vid doesn't like this word very much, but it starts "D" and rhymes with "Fly"

Every time I see Brian Johnson it reminds me of that Woody Allen quip: "Nobody gets out of this world alive."

Insightful video. It's true, we love to employ science for our benefit, but there's a hard line on what's not meant to be solved.

I don't know if I agree with your take that science won't make us live longer. I agree that avoiding death entirely is impossible, but I dont see why science won't eventually make us live for an undetermined amount of time... There just is nothing mechanically stopping it from doing so. But honestly, the prospect of living forever is the most scary thing to me... Do we really want to live in a world where some people get to live "forever" and others don't? Do we want the insane inequalities that will bring? On top of what you said of course, but lifespan extension is nothing but dystopian to me. I was watching a podcast, featuring doctor Mike Israetel. Who, much like Bryan is an avid transhumanist, who claims that in 3 or 4 decades we will figure out immortality. I trully am frightened by transhumanism, I can't really see what good can come out of it... But at the same time, it's like nuclear weapons, or cloning. It's a pandora's box that will just be opened eventually... In dr Mike Israetel's case, he was essentially shilling for big pharma in that there will be pills for everything. Want to grow big muscles but don't want to work out? Take a pill that simulates a work out. It's not the same as steroids... Do we really want to reduce the human condition to just taking pills and achieving years of hard work nonchallantly? I agree that these scientism transhumanists are completely wrong about the scale of time of these things... But I think they are going to be right in the long term, I just don't think it's a good thing. As a complete aside, when he was taking blood from his son, it really was telling... Should a parent ever take the lifeblood of their child to further their own lifespan? Vampires were an allegory untill recently

Great video overall. Loved the take on all of it and the substack essay aa well.

Honestly loving a decent take about this very strange guy.

I’ve been watching an anime recently, Galaxy Express 999, and it’s all about a humanity that has become able to live forever and inhabit the stars…and it’s very miserable 😂 Most people have gone crazy, or awful, have twisted moral values, and it makes total sense. Even now, if being rich is the key to happiness, the richest people in the world would be saints. Anyone thinking immortality combined with a Star Trek-like altruistic humanism will save us is naive and delusional. You can be a spoiled Prince Charles with everything, and it will never be enough; you’ll want your Camilla when you already got a Diana, so to speak. I personally disagree with you in that I think science can create virtual immortality, but you’re exchanging dying from old age to going mad, mentally deteriorating from dementia, eventually dying from a natural disaster, or most likely get murdered. It’s merely punting the ball back. We even have an example of what it’s like to be immortal - children rarely think of death, and many become quite rotten without even considering it. Thinking we’ll be any better as adults because we can play with DNA or make spaceship…ha. If this virtual immortality is intended to make God obsolete for the atheistic humanist, I completely agree, it will become a hell; they’re setting themselves up for failure, and we’ll see atrocities made only possible by endless life we’ve never before imagined.

He forgot to add one more point to his 5 or 6 other ones - maximally reduced stress levels. That should've been the most important point, especially currently. Other than that his nutritional ideas sound reasonable enough. The guy makes a lot of sense.. well Except that scientism/transhumanism stuff ofc.

On yoga: As practiced in the West today, it's a religious related practice. It's origin, however, is really(!) Danish gym exercises imported to India about the time of independence movement. That dates it to no earlier than the late 19th century. The idea was to encourage physical exercise in Indians by tieing it with Hinduism. I confirmed the history more than once in yoga magazines. I personally do a couple of yoga moves without the religious overlay regularly. No sense throwing the baby out with the bathwater. However, I totally understand people who avoid it entirely at this point.

<a href="#" class="seekto" data-time="120">2:00</a> "Exercise. Get plenty of rest. You know, eat your green vegetables".

I like Bryan's project and have been following much of blueprint to help age gracefully, ie maintaining mobility, cognition, and staying relatively pain free. However, agree, there are red flags. He could have used any avenue for his project, but he's chosen to create a 'movement' (Don't Die Army) which involves meetups and a community built around adherence to this lifestyle and set of rules. If the project is about Bryan's health journey, testing methods, and publishing data - why the movement? Why some of the bizarre iconography with his photo shoots, and obsession with aesthetics? To be clear, not saying this is a cult, and I can understand why networking is important, but so far the transhumanist, god-complex scenario is playing out the way it would.

Regarding yoga - there are great physical (and some mental) benefits. And if you are already a Christian, you know you have to discriminate between false idols and good practices, and you know it is Christ who fills up all of Creation, from the bottom to the top, not some non-personal amorphous nothingness. The poses/stretches do not have an inherent religious aspect to them and the breathing/meditation/visualizing of nerve pathways/centres etc. can be decoupled from the eastern spirituality. And besides, there is nothing stopping you from using the Jesus Prayer as your breathing count... Just as with pagan holidays, Christianity bridges the gap between the flawed understanding of the olden peoples and Truth, the Path and the Life. It transforms the old and sanctifies it into the new, just as Christ fulfills the prophecies and transforms the Covenant.

Science is a tool. To me this is like worshipping an adjustable wrench.

Asclepius cured aging and Zeus smited him for it because man was destined for spiritual immortality, not physical.

Good Video. Do you think this fixation on immortality might be an outgrowth of the anti-natalist sentiment that seems to have become more common in the last few decades? Not necessarily that Brian Johnson is anti-natalist, but that he-like most people in the world today-has been influenced by the overall ethos that has taken hold of our society. At the very least its interesting, that people find it of greater value to dedicate years of study and spend millions of dollars trying to make us "immortal", than to expend a similar amount effort promoting the creation a families and communities.

<a href="#" class="seekto" data-time="750">12:30</a> - The only thing I can say is there are creatures that seem to have some degree of biological immortality, at least theoretically having no obvious limit to being able to repair their cells and prevent DNA degradation, and abnormal abilities to resist extreme conditions. Plenty of them are debatable but there's some Jellyfish which seem to be immortal, and Tardigrades which can survive the vacuum of space and are just difficult to kill. I'm sure there's still debate to be had in terms of aging theories, whether the Hayflick limit alone is what needs to be overcome, but for humans particularly, I'd assume maintaining brain health and function would be a bigger hurdle (along with the moral component you discussed).

Definitely appreciate the perspective.

You should talk about the decline in fast food service post pandemic: raising prices, lack of staff (no one wants to work blue collar in food service) and longer than usual service times.

Very well said. Thank you.

For what it’s worth, I do think yoga done in complete ignorance of its religious ritualism is perfectly healthy. I feel like it falls into “all things are lawful” category. But sure, I can certainly see some pitfalls are possible or even likely

Awesome insights. Thanks! Yes, the question of sin is crucial

for me to sleep 8 hours or more, I'd have to have like 10-12 beers. Just like some people have higher metabolisms, some people need less sleep. 6 hours is the most I can get. If I'm totally sedentary and using minimal brainpower its like 4 hours.

I am an atheist and I find the notion of indefinite life alarming. Can you imagine a world where nobody grows old and dies, but the available resources remain the same to supply hundreds and eventually thousands of billions of people? There would be draconian birth control on a massive scale and inevitably nothing but war in order to secure resources. Violence would replace aging as the prime cause for mortality. Worse still, can you imagine a world in which the rich can afford to buy the treatments to live indefinitely and the poor cannot? Aging and death is the one factor that puts everyone more or less in the same boat. It's the great leveler. Try to imagine the dystopian society in which that element were removed. Just come to peace with our mortality: we are not any different from any other animal; it's just that our brain got so big that we became too aware of ourselves and our own nature, to the point we struggle to accept it.

If i overeat enough, I will burst, and sooner perish. If i eat nothing long enough I, again, am just as musch a dead man. Everything is good to body and soul in moderation and in even doses across the board. That the average lifespan has been gradually increasing is fact, and in course with nature. Even longer life will bless future geneterations. For, as you critically cited, if without a healthier hyposatasis underlying our future generations' longevity, it would all be meaningless, to say the least, if one is to instead be suffering for those longer periods. We are most certainly referring to extended USEful period of total lifespan. It surely will be great to go iceskating with grand, greatgrand, and eventually even great-greatgrand children. Although, this expanse will, must surely come only from nature herself, in synch as when father time see's fit for us. Nice uplifting video. I enjoy a glass or two of jim beam on the weekends while enjoying your live pubtalks and writestreams, also puffing up a couple of bowls smooth pipe tobacco...BUT,..of course I willnever negleglect my bidaily, early morning and early evenig, trots at the track.

I don’t think it’s ‘scientism’ to presume that lifespans may increase in future. Historical trends have shown lifespan increasing in the past century. That could continue as a trend- that’s evidence based, not faith-based. Also, there are some animals with some presumed immortality - certain species of jellyfish and bacteria, for example.

Good video even if I disagree with some of your conclusions. I like your content and I like Brians content as well. You say hes treating scientists and scientific studies as a replacement / pseudo god because hes "taking control away from evening Brian" and giving that control to an algorithm but he and I assume the doctors hes paying to help him are the ones designing the algorithm. So if anything hes put himself in the place of a deity when it comes to his diet. On a more general note, I think you may be straw manning the scientific method a bit. Scientists dont say we had this one study that says X so that is the un mutable truth now and forever. They test ideas keep what works and discard what doesnt rinse and repeat untill they come closer and closer to verifiable answers that tell us something about our world / universe / self. I understand science is done by people and all people are fallible and some are outright bad actors but the scientific method works better than anything else I've come across to provide myself answers to how and why the world works the way it does. I understand as someone who believes in religion youre going to have to disagree with my last statement and you'll get no hate from me if religion has helped you understand the world in a real way I cant nor would I take that away from you. I just flatly dont believe the same. Again just want to say I do like your content been a subscriber for a long time. Also these are just off the top of my head thoughts after watching the video once. TLDR: I'm a functional atheist literal agnostic and I believe the scientific method is our best tool to understand ourselves and our world / universe. Keep up the good work and have a good one.

what do u think of potentially being able to reverse aging via modern medicine some time in the future though? if given the choice, would u extend your life?

I don't disagree with your overall point and also that's the most I've learned about that longevity guy since I've heard about him, since all I've read is what I see on Twitter and all people can do on there is tear people down, but a couple thoughts--there is in fact an animal that can live forever by regenerating itself, and there may be a few even, but I know there's at least a jellyfish that can be thought of as immortal from that sense. Also, even though it's still theoretical, David Sinclair has an idea that people can live for at least hundreds of years by doing something very similar where their RNA is regenerated or replenished or something. I read his book twice so I should remember, but his thesis is compelling from a theoretical standpoint.

Interesting video. I didn't know that he was a former Mormon. Now that he isn't going to the Celestial Kingdom, he's trying to make it here on earth, maybe? On a different note, I find the idea of immortality to be terrifying. One of the graces that all of elites, that run the world, do is die. Don't take that away! Family Guy had a funny parody on this idea.

I like him. But I think that unfortunately, like with so many human ideas and inventions, he is digging our own pit. I can see how in the future we will be mandated what and what not to eat, maybe like a part of a credit system. Ostensibly for the planet, in reality for the better exploitation of even the last drop of energy left in us. This is the thing: you are either the creator of your own destiny and can change around things for yourself in a huge way or you are lazy and let central contral handle it and lose your freedom.

I'm actually a fan of what Brian is doing. There hasn't been a single person in history with the resources or discipline to live as healthy of a life as possible, and I genuinely believe he has the conviction to see his experiment through. I have no idea what it's going to lead to, but I'm fascinated by what Brian is going to look like in 10-20 years.

💯

it was solved in 2021

I can see that. There is a gaming channel, Resonant Arc, both former Mormons that are agnostic, their channel is focused on finding philosophical and Gnosticism in particular games primarily. We always are busy making a god for ourselves or becoming god to ourselves to fill that "god-shaped hole" in ourselves. He lost his faith and no is pursuing that by his own means.

Interesting topic! Thanks for the video. That list of things to do sounds ok by me. I could certainly do better myself in those areas, but I would add at least two more items... 1. Get married, and 2. Have children. Although i am not married and have no children, I see the massive benefits that they would have had on my life. So many of my married friends tell me that being single is better, but I don't believe it. Perhaps being single and childless gives me a better perspective on those topics.