Israel's Killer Robots

 

One of the most automated militaries in the world is that of Israel. For its size and population, that tiny nation in the Near East receives some of the most lavish foreign aid in the world. This includes collaboration with defence contractors and the sharing of technology. Christopher Everard's documentary Superstate describes some of the drones and robots being developed by the Israel Defence Forces, including a terrifying thing that looks like a snake, see: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1JnQL7mjspg. There's also another machine called a "dog" which moves on four legs, see: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JD0SnMFMFoY. These vehicles are very difficult to knock over and can traverse almost any surface. They can climb stairs and very steep hills. Source: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3164110/. A lot of the fighting in Gaza is happening underground. Hamas has dug out a huge network of tunnels and subterranean bases across the territory and the company Roboteam has developed some small portable robots that can explore the tunnels and identify enemy positions without risking personnel. Underground it's not always possible to direct the robot with remote control so it has some autonomous capabilities. This makes it very different to, say, the Gladiator or MQ9 Reaper. These platforms are controlled by a human pilot just like any other. The only difference is the pilot is not inside the aircraft; instead they are sitting on the ground in a control centre, sometimes a long way away, driving their charge via remote control. Autonomous robots are controlled by an AI computer which can direct and make decisions by themselves. They can take photographs, pick up electronic intelligence, detect mines or booby traps and transport hardware, all without the help of any human operator. It is reported that no autonomous robot is armed. They cannot initiate combat without human supervision... yet! It is technically possible though. Will we one day see the dawning of the age of killer robots? This has sometimes been compared to Robocop, but that is inaccurate. The famous film is about a policeman killed in the line of duty and reanimated as a cyborg. He is not a robot; his human side remains and in fact it grows stronger over the course of the story. Viewers of the movie will know that the cyborg cop is introduced to replace a completely mechanical law enforcement robot called ED-209 after the robot kills somebody accidentally in a test. This is what concerns me. Unlike most people I do not take a partisan position in Israel-Gaza conflict. I've seen a huge amount of propaganda levelled at both sides and I can't work the rights and wrongs. I just feel sorry for all innocent Israelis and Palestinians caught up in it, as I say in the background link. Military robots with the ability to kill will almost certainly be introduced at some point if the war continues; and it won't stop there. After they have proved themselves on the battlefields of Gaza they will appear in other countries in other wars, and indeed for peacetime roles in the police as well as the military. There's nothing the government would like more than to remove the human element from their ability to deliver violence. It is actually very inconvenient for them having their guns in the hands of flesh-and-blood brain carriers who have thoughts and feelings of their own; and who sometimes rebel against their instructions. This is why they go to so much effort to control us on a mental level... How many seconds do I have to comply?
See here for background: https://hpanwo-tv.blogspot.com/2023/10/israel-war-livestream.html.