AOC vs the robot dog

[Dem4Life1102]

Link to tweet

[speak easy]

1. What could possibly go wrong?

[Hermit-The-Prog]

2. The filthy rich demand protection from those they exploit to increase their wealth.

[Celerity]

4. thread winner

[George II]

18. "the dog responded to a home invasion and barricaded situation on East 227th Street....

....near White Plains Road in Wakefield. "

No "filthy rich" in that neighborhood. It has a perfectly sensible purpose and had nothing to do with "filthy rich" people but to alleviate a possible dangerous situation that residents on that street might have been exposed to.

[Hermit-The-Prog]

39. All we ever need is a good robot with a gun.

[KS Toronado]

44. And they'll separate the good guys from the bad guys with the microchips.......

we are getting with the covid vaccines.

[diverdownjt]

43. Well the winner is....

Hermit-The-Prog. You'll be seeing these on all your finer estates...but they'll be the one's with a hidden gun's
like the one that has 9mm inside. You don't see it till it shoots.

[RandiFan1290]

3. She is right

as usual

[George II]

19. How so? Did you read the article?

[NurseJackie]

54. Probably not... but a lot of people DID see the movie "Chopping Mall"

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chopping_Mall

[NurseJackie]

5. Cool technology. I've seen other videos of these robots dancing...

... looks like there is a lot of great potential and many uses for these marvels.

Happy FridaY!

[Dem4Life1102]

7. Sure the dancing is cool, but where does it end?

[NurseJackie]

8. ROFL!

[LetMyPeopleVote]

50. LOL

[Chainfire]

26. I was raised in a time when Southern Baptist thought it was a sin to dance.

In fact, we would never make love standing because someone might think we were dancing.


The videos of the robots dancing and doing gymnastics, including backflips is amazing.

[sheshe2]

62. Oh, please!

Yet robots have been a reality in manufacturing for decades, having become cost-effective production-line solutions by the 1970s. The Roomba – an automated vacuum cleaner that is perhaps the most famous domestic-helper robot – was launched back in 2002, and has sold more than 10 million units worldwide. And with the rise of the Internet, programmable machines are increasingly on the rise.

snip

IN DEPTH
Another term for robot is automaton, and this is perhaps a more useful way to think about the technology. While science fiction has conditioned us to think of robots as humanoid figures like Star Wars’ C-3PO, most are more like R2-D2 – focused more on function than on form. Robots are designed to perform tasks independently – they can be anything from simple machines to complex systems.

The rise of autonomy

Unmanned military drone aircraft or Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) have made the headlines repeatedly over the last decade, having first (officially) seen action during the 1960s in the Vietnam War. Increasingly sophisticated, with sensors enabling independence from on-the-ground operators, many of these flying robots are capable of acting on their own, autopilot systems avoiding collisions as well as detecting and reacting to threats. Humans remain in control of attack systems only.

On the ground, bomb-disposal robots have been in use by the military and police for decades, while new systems like Boston Dynamics’ dog-like LS3 are in development to serve as autonomous all-terrain support units, navigating by a combination of sophisticated optical sensors and GPS.

snip

This near future of autonomous vehicles that can traverse almost any terrain could revolutionize the last mile of global supply chains. At the same time, almost every major automobile manufacturer is investing heavily in driverless technology, with initial data suggesting that autonomous automobiles are safer than human-controlled ones. Some countries are already introducing legislation to permit driverless vehicles to operate on public roads, potentially rendering the taxi, delivery truck and even the private car out-dated.

https://theonebrief.com/how-will-robots-change-the-world/

[Dem4Life1102]

63. You forgot BB8

And his feelings are very hurt

[sheshe2]

64. I see you completely ignored my post.

Changed the subject, I am use to that from you.

[Dem4Life1102]

68. Yes I did

And BB8 is still very hurt.

[lillypaddle]

9. You are such a trouble maker

[tulipsandroses]

6. To sum it up

Comedian Tim Barnes responded on Twitter with an edit he made in December of Boston Dynamics' robots dancing to jazz poet Gil Scott-Heron's scathing "Whitey On The Moon." You know, the one where Scott-Heron points out how his basic needs and concerns as a Black man were being treated as secondary and inconsequential while the Apollo Moon landings took place. In particular, he points at the governmental neglect worsening social struggles like medical debt, taxes, and drug addiction while other areas were helped to thrive.

Call me an alarmist, but I think this is very frightening when you consider the potential of these robots

Here's your chance to control a paint-shooting robot dog
Just because the gun mounted on this Spot robot only shoots paintballs doesn’t make it any less terrifying.

Well, it’s was only a matter of time. There’s a gun atop a Boston Dynamics Spot robot, and naturally, MSCHF is behind it. Multiple outlets report the Brooklyn-based hypebeast art collective and chaotic think tank dropped nearly $75,000 on a Spot robot to affix a paintball gun (not a real one, thankfully) to its back. On Wednesday, February 24 you can remotely take control of it in a gallery space, starting at 1 p.m. E.T.

[link:https://www.inputmag.com/culture/great-nypds-robot-dog-is-now-trotting-around-in-the-bronx|

[mezame]

10. Disturbing On So Many Levels

No leash?

Who let the dogs out indeed.

If this monstrosity was patrolling my neighborhood (and I'm white, so I might get away with it), I'd take a sledgehammer to it like no tomorrow. I can't even begin to imagine the response if this...this thing was caught in the Bronx - or Watts - or Compton.

Who green-lighted this abomination?!

[George II]

17. It's not patrolling the streets, the article clearly states what it's purpose was.

[mezame]

20. I Realize That...

...but I just don't trust the NYPD (or LAPD for that matter) to not use it for other purposes. Because they can. And they will. It won't be long before these robots get mass-produced on the cheap, and enhanced or modified for PD consumption. I'm really trying not to be paranoid here, but with the way PD's all across the country have been militarized to such great extent, it's just a matter of time before you see these beside officers responding to BLM and other demonstrations.

[George II]

23. The police department has has "robots" for decades to look into dangerous situations instead of...

...sending a live officer into an unknown possibly dangerous situation.

[mezame]

28. That's Fine, But...

Now robotic surveillance ground drones are being deployed for testing on low-income communities of color with under-resourced schools

So what happens if one of these 'dogs' harms someone? What if the 'pilot' of this hypothetically aggressive ground drone happened to be white? Same immunity?

Maybe I'm being naive, but I just don't see this ending well.

[George II]

30. Once again, THIS one wasn't "deployed for testing on low-income communities of color...."

According to the article it "responded to a home invasion and barricaded situation on East 227th Street near White Plains Road in Wakefield."

[rgbecker]

36. What does that even mean? "Responded to a home invasion".

[George II]

38. Let's see, if I can speculate a little:

1. A report was made to the police that someone broke into someone else's home.
2. The police responded.
3. Rather than send a live officer into a dangerous situation, they sent the robot.

I.e., "Responded to a home invasion"

[rgbecker]

41. So the robot went up to the door, interviewed the occupants, determined what happened

and wrote out the police report?

or 2. The robot crashed through the door, determined who should be there and who not and took into custody the invaders.

Just to be clear: This is a Home Invasion and not a burglary right?

[George II]

42. Don't know, I wasn't there. Give the reporter who wrote the article a call and ask.

[PatrickforB]

48. Good point. George II has brought up that these robots can help

in dangerous situations, and that is true, provided we massively increase civilian oversight of police departments, and subject police culture in the US to some changes to get rid of the racism.

I suppose we can't be Luddites - the robots are here, and will doubtless continue. But, there have to be some serious limitations on how they are used in policing. I'm all for demilitarizing the police, and doing as much as we can to redistribute wealth through good taxation and strong government services to level the playing field for minorities, and alleviate the grinding poverty so many of our people live under.

Later down thread, a description is given of a robot dog used in a bomb situation. And, that itself is a good use. We do live in an age of high-tech. Cyber warfare. Artificial intelligence. Massively robotized factories. War and surveillance drones. Self-driving vehicles. And so on. This technology is here, now, and we must somehow find within ourselves the wisdom to control it.

Too bad our wisdom as a species hasn't kept up with our technological knowhow. Or, we can ask, like Jeff Goldblum in Jurassic Park, whether the ability to DO something justifies actually doing it.

[mezame]

51. From The Same Article...

...cherry-picked by GeorgeII:

...police reform activists have long argued that this kind of technology only exacerbates the widening divide between law enforcement and civilians, edging toward militarization. There are already problems around surveillance and violence primarily targeting communities of color, especially Black Americans. This is the last thing people need right now.

It's hard to imagine the people of Bronx — or any borough of New York for that matter — feeling safer with Digidog parading about on sidewalks. The entire development has reminded many observers of the staggering miscommunication between technological advancement and what everyday people actually need.

And this whole discussion should be focused on AOC's (in the frickin' headline) tweet emphasizing the misplaced priorities of police funding, and not solely on how robots are used in obviously dangerous situations.

These 'dogs' are now being tested in low-income communities - says so right in her tweet! Another military tool designed for use by police departments. Despite all the candy-coated reassurances, I won't trust these things as far as I can throw 'em.

[PatrickforB]

52. I hear you. Remember the movie Robocop? The T-whatever?

That giant law enforcement robot that ended up shooting up the board room in the movie?

I love the excerpt you put in about imagining people of the Bronx feeling safer with Digidogs patrolling the streets. You are right - it is a militarization of the police.

[NurseJackie]

61. The "T-whatever" was Terminator.

Alex Murphy (RoboCop) was a Detroit police officer murdered in the line of duty and revived as a cyborg. I don't think he had a code-letter/number designation.

Have you seen "Chopping Mall" that's a fun dystopian-future movie too!

Chopping Mall (originally released as Killbots) is a 1986 American science-fiction comedy horror film co-written and directed by Jim Wynorski, produced by Julie Corman, and starring Kelli Maroney, Tony O'Dell, John Terlesky, and Russell Todd. The story focuses on three security robots turning maniacal, and killing teenage employees inside a shopping mall after dark.

[Autumn]

22. Yeah, like that's not fucking subject to change. nt

[George II]

24. Did you read the post to which I responded? Please read it and then I'll accept your apology.

[Autumn]

27. Don't bother accepting George because an apology is not forthcoming. nt

[George II]

31. And good morning to you, too, Autumn. Getting back, it wasn't a "fucking subject to change", but....

....you already knew that. As we were jokingly told during our basic training years ago, "Ready. Shoot. Aim."

[Autumn]

32. Have a cuppa and try that again George. nt

[Celerity]

33. on a dime

[Autumn]

34. A dime with nine cents back in change.

[George II]

56. I wouldn't give a plugged nickel, much less a dime for why it was claimed the subject was changed...

Notice that the person who said that punted when asked to say how it was changed (which it wasn't, but whatever....)

[Celerity]

58. She said 'subject to change' in regards to the current mission of the robo dogs, no clue what you

are on about with misrepresenting what she typed.



Autumn never said 'the subject' was changed, she was referring to the potential for robo dog menace unleashed in certain neighbourhoods.


To recap for those playing at home:

you said



to which she replied





Consider your plugged nickel rejected as defaced currency.

[sop]

11. We need these surveillance drones inside oak-paneled corporate board rooms, on putting greens

at exclusive golf courses, patrolling the entire length of Wall Street, inside the golden throne room in Mar-a-Lago or any place the Masters of the Universe congregate. That's where schemes for the really big crimes are hatched.

[WhiskeyGrinder]

29. They could also keep an eye on the cops themselves, who are some of the biggest cons out there.

[diverdownjt]

45. Man are you on the right track or what.....

[diverdownjt]

46. If a company is traded publicly we should see what they are up too.

How do you like them apple's? If you want to mine resources that belong to all then all should prosper...or no deal!

I'm talking about a public review board that overlook's anything to do with natural resources.
If you ever worked in the field you are ineligible.

[FailureToCommunicate]

12. Hey, robots...PLEASE don't forget the Three Rules of Robots !

[AverageOldGuy]

13. Please pardon my language, but . . .

WTF??????????

What is this robotic dog being used for??? To patrol school parking lots??

When I was in high school back in the late 1950's, if this thing had showed up at our school, one of us good ol' boys would have retrieved a deer rifle from our pickup and used it for target practice.

[George II]

16. Read the article.....

....the dog responded to a home invasion and barricaded situation on East 227th Street near White Plains Road in Wakefield.

[Sympthsical]

14. And the ED-209 said, "Daddy?"

That's what we need. A Robocop fetus.

[George II]

15. Years ago when I was between jobs I took a temporary IT job with a bank down on Broad Street....

....in lower Manhattan.

One afternoon there was a suspicious package left outside the building next to ours. They used a more rudimentary robot to examine the package with a camera and an arm that could pick it up and carry it to their bomb truck.

It was an amazing 30-minutes, watching how they handled the package with that robot (we never found out if it was a bomb or not)

That was down in the Financial District, not a "low-income community of color".

This robot is a great idea - should they send a live police officer into an unknown dangerous situation or that robot? That robot is not ALL that the city is spending money on in the police force.

[Arazi]

21. $$ for more school resources vs more $$ for police?

Yeah, I'm with AOC on this 100%

[WhiskeyGrinder]

25. The vast majority of crime happens because people's needs aren't being met.

People's needs aren't met because resources are allocated inequitably. Here's what that looks like.

[uponit7771]

35. RIGHT !?!? Millions for war but no more to talk to the poor

[NJCher]

37. can you imagine....

from the last sentence of the story:

The department also deployed a robotic dog back in October to a Brooklyn shooting, after the gunman holed up in a nearby basement.

So can you imagine being the first guy to have a robotic dog sicced after you!

The guy should write a short story about it to pay his lawyers.

[MineralMan]

40. "Does your dog bite?"

"No."

Dog bites person.

"I thought you said your dog doesn't bite."

"That is not my dog."

[PatrickforB]

47. Indeed. Funding schools and ensuring broadband access to minority kids seems

a bigger priority to me than police digidogs.

Silly me.

This is actually a bit scary - law enforcement robots? Drones? Over low income communities? 'Monitoring' people of color?

Talk about institutional racism.

[George II]

49. "NYPD deploys robot dog after woman shot during Brooklyn parking dispute"

NYPD deploys robot dog after woman shot during Brooklyn parking dispute

A fight over a parking spot ended with one combatant’s wife getting accidentally shot — and cops later deployed a robot “dog” when the gunman holed up in a nearby basement, according to police sources and photos from the scene.

The dispute happened around 10 p.m. Wednesday on Atkins Avenue near Sutter Avenue in Cypress Hills, cops said.

The 43-year-old suspect opened fire — striking a 42-year-old woman in the head, instead of her husband, the intended target.

The shooter then bolted into a nearby building where he barricaded himself, according to the sources.

The NYPD’s Emergency Services Unit responded, along with the robot — developed by Boston Dynamics and known as Spot, photos from the scene show.

https://nypost.com/2020/10/29/nypd-deploys-robot-dog-after-brooklyn-parking-dispute-shooting/

[mezame]

53. Forest, Meet Trees

Seriously George, there's no dispute that digidogs are useful in certain situations. That's one thing.

But now they are ACTIVELY TESTING these in low-income and under-served communities and schools. And THAT is the whole point of the original post. AOC rightfully points out that there are serious misplaced funding priorities with respect to already militarized police departments.

Please quit flogging your dead horse.

[George II]

55. NO WHERE in the cited article in the OP or the tweet does it say, definitively, that they're....

"ACTIVELY TESTING these in low-income and under-served communities and schools."

That was just thrown in the tweet for whatever reason I don't know, but certainly not confirmed by facts.

They're testing the dogs, yet (I believe they only have one, but...). However, there is NO indication as to where in general. In this case the robot wasn't being tested, it was being used to clear a crime scene in the Wakefield section of the Bronx.

As for it being "low-income", the median income of Wakefield, Bronx is $56,466, the median income of the Borough of the Bronx is $40,088. It's one of the higher income neighborhoods of the Bronx.

But this all makes good headlines, I guess.

[mezame]

57. I'll say one thing, I think your NHL teams are pretty good, otherwise...

In Dem4Life1102's OP, a tweet from AOC is (re)posted. I don't do Twitter and wasn't interested in pursuing that rabbithole.

As an unabashed liberal voting Democrat, I am waaaay more interested in AOC's opinion than the NY Posts'. Her whole point - and I can't believe I have to say this again, George, is the way American police departments continue to invest in military-grade hardware, when that kind of funding should be directed toward more pressing needs for our under-served communities.

But, being a Canadian - and one who thinks $40,088 - even $56,486 - is a higher income neighborhood, then you obviously haven't spend a lot of time in the Bronx.

Eh?

[George II]

59. Rather presumptuous, aren't you?

Not that it's any of your business, but I was born in Brooklyn NY, we moved to Queens when I was 9, lived in NYC until I was 24, and lived in the NYC area until I was 40. That included Brooklyn, Queens, Manhattan, and a short time in the Bronx (not far from Yankee Stadium), Yonkers and White Plains in Westchester. Except for a few months in my 20s when I lived in Ohio, I've spent the rest of my 73 years no further from NYC than 65 miles.

I dare say, I've spent a LOT of time in the Bronx, and all around NYC area.

[mezame]

60. My apologies...

I stand corrected.

And I still think you missed the entire point about AOC's tweet. Fuck the NY Post. Aren't you the least bit concerned about how non-white communities would view these digidogs in their neighborhood - regardless of why they're there?

[BradAllison]

66. She did get primaried

By some Maria Bartomo rip off (wonder why she ran) who got clobbered.

[radius777]

67. I'm for tech if it helps replace the police as we know it.

If the tech eventually replaces alot of what the cops do, I'm all for it, as at least a robot or camera only records the facts, and has no bias.

Tech also can go where it's dangerous or people simply can't be - which is important in urban settings.