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> The organization you're talking about is diametrically configured to oppose the thing you're saying they should be mindful of True. That's precisely why engi

> The organization you're talking about is diametrically configured to oppose the thing you're saying they should be mindful of True. That's precisely why engineering ethics is our last hope.

MrLeap 8y ago
If our last hope depends on any kind of unity of intent among members of our profession then we're doomed. It's at this point I am tempted to unpack what precipice we're about to go over when our last hope disappoints. Instead i'll stop on an optimistic note: everything is terrible and nothing matters, but humans will keep doing human stuff for as long as we can. By some measures things will continuously improve and by some others we'll regress and retry old tyrannies under new epochs. The ebb and flow can't be arrested by unity while we all hate each other like we do. Fortunately, we'll only keep on hating each other until we get something else we hate even more. Make no mistake, some day we'll all come together to hate something else again. The unity of action that'll afford will allow us to do some pretty remarkable things. Hopefully the thing we all hate together actually deserves it this time. It doesn't always work that way ;(
IBM 8y ago
It absolutely isn't. Industries are regulated because they don't naturally do what society wants. Regulation changes their incentives and behavior to make that happen. A leopard can't change its spots and an ad-tech company is never going to design their products with preserving privacy first, because they can't [1]. It's like a body rejecting an organ transplant. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Privacy_by_design https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Privacy_by_design
- yuhong 8y ago
  That is why I wrote the essay. The history behind that is not simple.
FooHentai 8y ago
Mhm. In the same way that imbuing stoats with a sense of empathy will help restore endangered bird numbers. As another comment stated, direct governance in the form of regulation is the appropriate tool for this problem. Other options, especially hoping for an application of a particular ethical framework, is dreams.

> The organization you're talking about is diametrically configured to oppose the thing you're saying they should be mindful of True. That's precisely why engineering ethics is our last hope.

MrLeap 8y ago

If our last hope depends on any kind of unity of intent among members of our profession then we're doomed. It's at this point I am tempted to unpack what precipice we're about to go over when our last hope disappoints. Instead i'll stop on an optimistic note: everything is terrible and nothing matters, but humans will keep doing human stuff for as long as we can. By some measures things will continuously improve and by some others we'll regress and retry old tyrannies under new epochs. The ebb and flow can't be arrested by unity while we all hate each other like we do. Fortunately, we'll only keep on hating each other until we get something else we hate even more. Make no mistake, some day we'll all come together to hate something else again. The unity of action that'll afford will allow us to do some pretty remarkable things. Hopefully the thing we all hate together actually deserves it this time. It doesn't always work that way ;(

IBM 8y ago

It absolutely isn't. Industries are regulated because they don't naturally do what society wants. Regulation changes their incentives and behavior to make that happen. A leopard can't change its spots and an ad-tech company is never going to design their products with preserving privacy first, because they can't [1]. It's like a body rejecting an organ transplant. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Privacy_by_design https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Privacy_by_design

yuhong 8y ago
That is why I wrote the essay. The history behind that is not simple.

FooHentai 8y ago

Mhm. In the same way that imbuing stoats with a sense of empathy will help restore endangered bird numbers. As another comment stated, direct governance in the form of regulation is the appropriate tool for this problem. Other options, especially hoping for an application of a particular ethical framework, is dreams.