I for one am convinced that aging and death is an evolutionary error (from the point of view of the host, not of the genes!), which can be solved with technology. Like all technological problems, it is just a matter of dedicating enough brain-power to solve it. And the only reason why we are not throwing enough brain power to it currently is because we, as a society, are illogically convinced that either it is an insolvable problem, or it is a problem not worth tackling (because of the huge ethical issues associated with immortality).
But both views can be overcomed with technology again: as soon as it starts to become clear that we can solve the problem, more and more brainpower will be dedicated to it (capitalism is very much suited for tackling this). And technology can also diminish most of the ethical problems (resource pressures caused by overpopulation, ...) ultimately by allowing for out-of-earth colonies.
The only open question is if access to immortality will be open to everyone or will be controlled by a small elite for centuries to come (ultimately it will be a commodity, like all technology). Capitalism in its current form (specially as practiced in the US) is not very inspiring in this regard.
While true immortality is the ultimate goal of researchers like de Grey, from a practical standpoint, current research is actually focusing on immorbidity (or indefinite lifespan).
Basically, remaining reasonably youthful and healthy does not necessarily keep you from being run over by a truck. For that we'll need some sort of backup-and-restore system.
But both views can be overcomed with technology again: as soon as it starts to become clear that we can solve the problem, more and more brainpower will be dedicated to it (capitalism is very much suited for tackling this). And technology can also diminish most of the ethical problems (resource pressures caused by overpopulation, ...) ultimately by allowing for out-of-earth colonies.
The only open question is if access to immortality will be open to everyone or will be controlled by a small elite for centuries to come (ultimately it will be a commodity, like all technology). Capitalism in its current form (specially as practiced in the US) is not very inspiring in this regard.