Previous advancements in the human capacity to kill have dealt with the how – how the system, machine, technique can go faster, further, or bigger. The use of increasingly advanced robotic deals with the who – who is actually fighting our very human wars. So says Peter W. Singer in this thought-provoking video:
He asks some key questions: What does this do to the ethos of war? Does it make war easier?
I have two questions to add:
- What do you think are the consequences of further de-personalizing war? Smart bombs fired from miles away are one thing; robots built with software that “makes decisions” is quite another, it seems to me.
- What could we, as a species, accomplish if this much effort, creativity, problem-solving, and money were put behind a more constructive mission?
Thinking above all, in response to this video, about the response of the Christian community. What is the response of those that follow the Prince of Peace, to this development, unique to our time and culture?
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