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This argument is dangerous. You can extend that to any point of the chain, salespeople can be considered as just neutral and tool like as programmers and the b

This argument is dangerous. You can extend that to any point of the chain, salespeople can be considered as just neutral and tool like as programmers and the blame shifted up ad infinitum. While I don't think that he was complicit in this case (maybe the thought that what he was doing could have bad repercussions never went through his head, I don't know...), if you know that you're writing a program that will be used to calculate a way to kill the biggest number of people in a terrorist attack, would you still claim that you're not complicit because your boss that is paying you are the one complicit? If you don't know what are the uses of the program, I think that you can claim that, but if you know, definitely you're being complicit, even if you're being paid or working under orders (and not under duress).

mmirate 9y ago
If the program's user-to-be is a customer instead of someone in the same company? Sure. I would also gladly write a program used to calculate a way to kill the biggest number of terrorists in a missile strike, and that has much less potential to be illegal (thus monumentally costly, and thus wholly counterproductive ... but again that's the businesspeople's concern). And your argument is dangerous, by ignoring the ultimate authority+responsibility of any company's leadership and investors.
jjeaff 9y ago
I would point out the difference in someone who simply creates a tool, and a salesperson who, perhaps, knowingly lies, stretches the truth, hides inconvenient truth, and otherwise uses unethical means to promote something they know is wrong. There is also a very steep scale of diminishing complicity. Is the accountant that works at the electric company which provides electricity to the office building where the sketchy sales guys plot to sell their unhealthy products also complicit (assuming he knows what goes on there)?

mmirate 9y ago

If the program's user-to-be is a customer instead of someone in the same company? Sure. I would also gladly write a program used to calculate a way to kill the biggest number of terrorists in a missile strike, and that has much less potential to be illegal (thus monumentally costly, and thus wholly counterproductive ... but again that's the businesspeople's concern). And your argument is dangerous, by ignoring the ultimate authority+responsibility of any company's leadership and investors.

jjeaff 9y ago

I would point out the difference in someone who simply creates a tool, and a salesperson who, perhaps, knowingly lies, stretches the truth, hides inconvenient truth, and otherwise uses unethical means to promote something they know is wrong. There is also a very steep scale of diminishing complicity. Is the accountant that works at the electric company which provides electricity to the office building where the sketchy sales guys plot to sell their unhealthy products also complicit (assuming he knows what goes on there)?