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Life Extension Foundation
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The Life Extension Foundation (LEF) is an organisation primarily concerned with pushing dubious dietary supplements, in the cause of greatly advancing the average lifespan of humanity, or a portion thereof. It is headquartered in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and was founded by Saul Kent (a longtime transhumanist and "life extension advocate") and William Faloon in 1980.[1][2]
It claims its primary purpose is funding research.[3] It sells dubious supplements claimed to be for anti-aging and preventative medicine purposes, as well as "sports performance."
It used to be a nonprofit, but was so egregiously oriented to its sales focus that the IRS revoked its nonprofit status in May 2013 ... retrospective to 2006.[4] Forbes tax blogger Peter J. Reilly noted that "The IRS’ problem with the Foundation is [...] an entirely worldly one: it asserts the membership organization’s operations seem to be too entwined with the for-profit Life Extension Buyers Club."[5] LEF filed a Complaint for Declaratory Judgment on August 7, 2013, in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, challenging the IRS' allegations;[6] the case is pending.[7]
The Life Extension Foundation puts a lot of effort into supporting "health freedom," so that it can keep pushing dubious supplements.
External links
References
- ↑ Heard, Alex (1997-09-28). "Technology makes us optimistic; They want to live". New York Times. Retrieved 2008-02-07.
- ↑ Rose, Steve (2004-01-23). "Stephen Valentine talks about the battle to conquer death". London: The Guardian. Retrieved 2008-02-07.
- ↑ "Funding Scientific Research". The Principal Mission of the Life Extension Foundation. Life Extension Foundation. 1995–2013. Retrieved 2013-09-20.
- ↑ "Report of Examination". Internal Revenue Service. Retrieved 19 November 2013.
- ↑ Reilly, Peter J. "IRS Kills Tax Exemption Of Foundation Pushing Eternal Life". Forbes. Retrieved 19 November 2013.
- ↑ Case 1:13-cv-01219, United States District Court for the District of Columbia
- ↑ Life Extension Foundation, Inc Plaintiff (August 7, 2013). "Case 1:13-cv01219". Complaint for Declaratory Judgment. Life Extension Foundation. Retrieved 2014-09-17.