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> Contributing means being complicit. I don't agree with this. Many open source projects have been used for sinister means (not just by governments). But does

> Contributing means being complicit. I don't agree with this. Many open source projects have been used for sinister means (not just by governments). But does that make those contributors complicit? Should those contributors be safe-guarding against all possible unintended use cases? It seems like you're painting all military efforts and funding in evil terms. But these efforts are directed by many different people, each with their own goals and agendas. Some of those efforts are intended for the betterment of humanity, while other efforts are at the detriment of humanity (at least in my opinion). I worked for several years at a large defense contractor. The majority of our funding came from military contracts. I worked on a project intended to help detect and disarm explosive devices. And I worked next to a team that was trying to rapidly detect infectious diseases. We all thought we were doing work that would benefit society. But virtually any technology can be used for malicious purposes. Does that make us complicit if those technologies are ever used in malicious ways? Do the evil actions of some people in an organization make the entire organization evil? Does that mean that all military efforts are unjust?

calcifer 9y ago
> Does that make us complicit if those technologies are ever used in malicious ways? Yes. If you choose to work for an entity you help further their work. Militaries are made for war and by contributing to a military, you directly help them commit atrocities. Working for a military is simply war profiteering [1]. > Do the evil actions of some people in an organization make the entire organization evil? Yes, if you voluntarily join an organization knowing they have evil people doing evil things. > Does that mean that all military efforts are unjust? Yes, with probably the only exception being a defensive war. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_profiteering https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_profiteering
- olleromam91 9y ago
  By using this "logic" you draw a very blurry line, that wont lead to any decision making, just arguing over who is most evil. I can now assume that miners and forgery workers are complicit in murder because they harvest and refine the metals that build weapons. And that farmers are complicit because they produce the food that is used in military rations, the wool or cotton that is used to make their uniforms.

calcifer 9y ago

> Does that make us complicit if those technologies are ever used in malicious ways? Yes. If you choose to work for an entity you help further their work. Militaries are made for war and by contributing to a military, you directly help them commit atrocities. Working for a military is simply war profiteering [1]. > Do the evil actions of some people in an organization make the entire organization evil? Yes, if you voluntarily join an organization knowing they have evil people doing evil things. > Does that mean that all military efforts are unjust? Yes, with probably the only exception being a defensive war. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_profiteering https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_profiteering

olleromam91 9y ago
By using this "logic" you draw a very blurry line, that wont lead to any decision making, just arguing over who is most evil. I can now assume that miners and forgery workers are complicit in murder because they harvest and refine the metals that build weapons. And that farmers are complicit because they produce the food that is used in military rations, the wool or cotton that is used to make their uniforms.