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From: kyle.wbst@XEROX.ARPA
Newsgroups: net.ai
Subject: Robot Rights
Message-ID: <1618@sri-arpa.UUCP>
Date: Fri, 29-Jun-84 17:22:46 EDT
Article-I.D.: sri-arpa.1618
Posted: Fri Jun 29 17:22:46 1984
Date-Received: Sat, 7-Jul-84 07:15:51 EDT
Lines: 11

re: Why distinguish humans from machines...

For the same reason the Supreme Court in the last century got into the
business of deciding what fraction of a human being a slave was for
political purposes. Pandora's box will be opened again on this issue in
the future if and when we succeed in creating AI devices that pass
various tests. I don't care if the devices are made of silicon, biomass
(shades of genetic engineering), or some hybrid combo. The point is, I
can see some group organizing them into either a union, a voting block,
or a public interest group to keep another ton of lawyers living off the
fat of the land for years to come.