Affairs of the Heart

Relationships at the workplace can cause problems.  For all the pleasure a warm, tender kiss brings, trouble tends to follow.  Nevertheless, the consequences of these actions have not deterred people from their unbridled passions.   Consider what you have read about the different types of ethics (personal and social) discussed in chapter five of your text.   Suppose you found yourself in a conflict of interest situation at work.   How would you handle your affairs as the tempestuous couple at work?

You have two choices for this assignment: (1) you can be against any sort of love breach at the job and describe the personal and social ethics of your resistance; (2) you can play devil’s advocate and welcome the affair, risking the loss of your job.  When you have decided your answer, turn to page 97 in your textbook and peruse the four concepts in bold (Rights, Justice, Utility, and Care).  Pick two that you would either adhere to or violate based on your choices.  Explain your reasons in detail.

Colossus:  The Forbin Project

Science-fiction writers have often depicted machines as living things.   Unfortunately, in such films like The Matrix, Fail Safe, and The Terminator, these machines overthrow their carbon-based creators, ruling the Earth in the process.  Similar to the short story I Have no Mouth and I Must Scream, the film Colossus: the Forbin Project features an antagonistic, self-aware computer enslaving humanity.  Though the film’s visuals appear dated, its message remains relevant: One day, despite all of our safety protocols, our technology will be our downfall.

For your first blog assignment, watch the last scene from the film Colossus: the Forbin Project found on this YouTube link—http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gMst6sqRlMU&feature=related.  After viewing the finale, write on the following topic:  Suppose a Colossus-type commissioned you to write a technical manual on its inner-workings, so that future human slaves could update its components.  What would be the rhetorical context of your document?  How would you wrangle with the ethical, legal and political ramifications of these instructions?  Remember, you are under micro-chip rule, and the eyes of your circuited-oppressor are everywhere. 

You may also plan a written sabotage so future generations can escape Computer dominance.  If you choose this prompt, then also consider the political, legal, and ethical outcomes of your insubordination.