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Article 1543 of comp.ai.philosophy:
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>From: yodaiken@chelm.cs.umass.edu (victor yodaiken)
Newsgroups: comp.ai.philosophy
Subject: Re: Daniel Dennett
Message-ID: <39703@dime.cs.umass.edu>
Date: 24 Nov 91 05:27:20 GMT
Article-I.D.: dime.39703
References: <1991Nov22.185012.21228@milton.u.washington.edu> <39652@dime.cs.umass.edu> <1991Nov23.001020.4844@milton.u.washington.edu>
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In article <1991Nov23.001020.4844@milton.u.washington.edu> monaghan@milton.u.washington.edu (Tracy Monaghan) writes:
>In article <39652@dime.cs.umass.edu> yodaiken@chelm.cs.umass.edu (victor yodaiken) writes:
>>Yup. That is, I'm not anti-machinery, but I'm against making human beings
>>subservient to machinery. Thus, computers are fine, computers that
>
>Humans will become subservient only if humans allow themselves to become
>subservient.  Obviously I have more optimism in humans than you.

The dream of creating superior beings seems to me to be inherently
anti-human. 

>
>>control people are not fine. 
>
>Traffic lights aren't fine?

I don't know about you, but traffic lights don't send me instructions.

>Humans add/create value to these objects.  Only humans can remove value.
>The question is not whether these tools are good or evil (they're
>inanimate) but will these tools be USED for good or evil? 

That's debatable, e.g., the beneficial uses of thermonuclear weapons,
anthrax dispersers, or torture implements do not leap to mind,
but its off the point anyways. 
Creating a tool is one thing, creating an intelligence is something else.
It is the claim of a.i. folks that they will create things that are not
inanimate.  


