Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

Pentagon Says Improper Image Morphing is War Crime

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the we're-not-making-this-up dept.

mwdib writes "Here's a story in Federal Computing Week in which the Pentagon decides that certain forms of computer morphing could be war crimes." It was hard not to file this under "humor," but Federal Computer Week is a serious publication that almost always gets its stories straight. So loonie as this may seem, it's not a joke.

3 of 185 comments (clear)

  1. Re:The Law of War? by phrawzty · · Score: 5

    "Rules of Engagement" are as old as conflict itself, and as silly as it might sound, they're better than nothing at all.

    In regards to this particular gem, i'm not entirely sure how this is a "new" revelation - impersonating enemy leaders has always been "illegal", in any form - whether it be cardboard cutouts or professional actors.
    Digital imaging is just another form of said impersonation. Why, exactly, did we need a study to show this to be true? Ah, the tax money hard at work.


    This is a little off topic, but there's always room for informational links on the Laws of War, so i say :).

    What are the rules of Engagement? - about.com

    Y! - The Rules of War

    Rules of Warfare - Arms Control

    The Geneva Convention(s) - Modern "Laws of War".


    .------------ - - -
    | big bad mr. frosty
    `------------ - - -

  2. "Laws of war" by TheDullBlade · · Score: 5

    Personally, I think the idea of laws of war are silly.

    For everything that is forbidden, there are dozens that are far more terrible.

    Expanding bullets are forbidden, but shrapnel is okay. It would be horribly wrong for the American soldiers to use bullets that explode (or even mushroom out to double width) when they hit an enemy body, but they are now planning to replace their M-16s with weapons that use sophisticated laser rangefinders and electronic fuses to fire bullets which explode as close as possible to an enemy soldier (in addition to firing conventional steel-jacketed bullets similar to those used in the M-16). However, I'm sure the targets will appreciate the distinction.

    The Japanese were not playing fair because of the way they treated prisoners, but it was okay for the US to nuke cities, slaughtering the civilian populations and effectively torturing thousands to death.

    The Vietnamese were wrong to treat POW's as they would treat anyone else who ran around "their country" shooting people, but it was fine for the Americans to try to counter guerilla tactics by mass defoliation of the land (with dangerous long-lasting poisons) and air-dumping countless mines that are still killing civilians.

    I'm not trying to defend the USA's enemies, just point out the irrationality of the laws of war.

    --
    /.
  3. Damn it! by Q*bert · · Score: 5
    So much for my brilliant secret plot! I was going to broadcast an image of Hitler saying, "I return! Join me at Otto's nightclub for the battle that will bring about the triumphant Fourth Reich," then machine-gun all the skinheads who came rushing in. Oh, well, now I'll just have to think of something even more insidious.

    Vovida, OS VoIP
    Beer recipe: free! #Source
    Cold pints: $2 #Product