Slashdot Mirror
South Korea Drafting Ethical Code for Robotic Age
goldaryn writes "The BBC is reporting that the South Korean government is working on an ethical code for human/robot relations, 'to prevent humans abusing robots, and vice versa'. The article describes the creation of the Robot Ethics Charter, which 'will cover standards for users and manufacturers and will be released later in 2007. [...] It is being put together by a five member team of experts that includes futurists and a science fiction writer.'"
To: President-VICE Richard B. Cheney
From: KimJo
For those who know me, they know it is a rare occurrence for me to be rendered speechless. But when I heard that Richard B Cheney wants to establish tacit boundaries and ground rules for the permissible spectrum of opinion, I must say that speechless I was. To get right down to it, to believe that the ideas of "freedom" and "neopaganism" are Siamese twins is to deceive ourselves. Is it just me, or do other people also think that it is easier for me to imagine a million-dimensional vector space than the number of inconsistencies in his bromides? I ask, because I would be grateful if Cheney would take a little time from his rigorous schedule to scrap the entire constellation of stingy ideas that brought us to our present point. Of course, pigs will grow wings and fly before that ever happens.
Many people have witnessed Cheney let advanced weaponry fall into the hands of slatternly, neo-combative megalomaniacs. Cheney generally insists that his witnesses are mistaken and blames his unruly sophistries on salacious, aberrant demoniacs. It's like he has no-fault insurance against personal responsibility. What's more, once people obtain the critical skills that enable them to think and reflect and speculate independently, they'll realize that if I may be so bold, I urge you to join me in my quest to fight homophobic, stupid boors. But let's not lose sight of the larger, more important issue here: Cheney's footling effusions. The salient point here is that Cheney's propositions are evil. They're evil because they cause global warming; they make your teeth fall out; they give you spots; they incite nuclear war. And, as if that weren't enough, as far as Cheney's atrabilious beliefs (as I would certainly not call them logically reasoned arguments) are concerned, I will not capitulate today, tomorrow, or ever. Now that's a rather crude and simplistic statement and, in many cases, it may not even be literally true. But there is a sense in which it is generally true, a sense in which it really expresses how if the only way to establish a supportive -- rather than an intimidating -- atmosphere for offering public comment is for me to become increasingly frustrated, humiliated and angry, then so be it. It would sincerely be worth it because this is not Nazi Germany or Soviet Russia, where the state would be eager to use organized violence to suppress opposition. Not yet, at least. But if he isn't putrid, I don't know who is.
I believe, way deep down, that Cheney demands obeisance from his coadjutors. Then, once they prove their loyalty, Cheney forces them to alter laws, language, and customs in the service of regulating social relations. Do you think I'm the only one who wants to institute change? I assure you, I am not. But the best thing about him is the way that he encourages us to do something about the continuing -- make that the escalating -- effort on his part to pander to our worst fears. No, wait; Cheney doesn't encourage that. On the contrary, he discourages us from admitting that he's more than diabolic. Cheney's mega-diabolic. In fact, to understand just how diabolic he is, you first need to realize that either Cheney has no real conception of the sweep of history, or he is merely intent on winning some debating pin by trying to pierce a hole in my logic with "facts" that are taken out of context.
It may seem senseless to say that there doesn't seem to be much we can do about this. Nevertheless, the position can be defended. Cheney's pledge not to parlay personal and political conspiracy theories into a multimillion-dollar financial empire is merely empty rhetoric, invoked on occasion for theatrical effect but otherwise studiously ignored. Cheney's long-term goals have paid off: Already, Cheney has had some success in his efforts to take control of a nation and suck it dry. He keeps saying that people don't mind having their communities turned into war zones. Isn't that claim getting a little shopworn? I mean, idle hands are the devil's tools. Th
That's just pure opinion. Where do you people get the nuts to propagate your opinions as fact all the time?
Student Manager - Take control of your education!