“Every time you, as an individual, shrug your shoulders and say ‘it is what it is’ and do something ethically problematic, you make it that much harder for anyone else to not do so. The pseudo-libertarian lie of ‘vote with your dollars’ is pure bullshit. You have already outvoted me, so I no longer have a choice.”
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“It is not inevitable just because Sam Altman tells his over-leveraged investors it is so. It becomes inevitable when you, _you personally_, decide that you just don't want to think about the externalities or put in the work to find better alternatives.”
“I have nothing left but contempt for ‘it is what it is.’
“No it isn't. It only is what it is because you’re OK with what it is, and aren’t putting in the work to make it otherwise. Those that don't give a fuck about fair copyright application, about poor people, about our planet, are putting in the work to make it so. And you're letting them.
“I do not forgive you.”
@ramsey Who knew one person could move so many mountains?
I think groups like @ACM_Ethics should be much more vocal about the harm that AI causes, especially given their Code of Ethics includes these principles:
* 1.2 Avoid harm.
* 1.5 Respect the work required to produce new ideas, inventions, creative works, and computing artifacts.
* 2.7 Foster public awareness and understanding of computing, related technologies, and their consequences.
https://www.acm.org/code-of-ethics
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* 3.1 Ensure that the public good is the central concern during all professional computing work.
* 3.2 Articulate, encourage acceptance of, and evaluate fulfillment of social responsibilities by members of the organization or group.
* 3.4 Articulate, apply, and support policies and processes that reflect the principles of the Code.
https://www.acm.org/code-of-ethics
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@ACM_Ethics * 4.1 Uphold, promote, and respect the principles of the Code.
* 4.2 Treat violations of the Code as inconsistent with membership in the ACM.
Including: “Each ACM member should encourage and support adherence by all computing professionals regardless of ACM membership.”
https://www.acm.org/code-of-ethics
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@ACM_Ethics Here’s a recent example (from today) of human harm caused by AI. This is an ethical issue and should be addressed as such within the entire computing profession.
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@ACM_Ethics That’s harm at an individual level, but @Crell’s blog post points to harm on much larger scales. Here are only a few of those (links from his post):
* https://www.salon.com/2024/01/09/impossible-openai-admits-chatgpt-cant-exist-without-pinching-copyrighted-work/
* https://www.independent.co.uk/independentpremium/long-reads/behind-the-ai-boom-an-army-of-overseas-workers-in-digital-sweatshops-b2401142.html
* https://www.technologyreview.com/2025/05/20/1116327/ai-energy-usage-climate-footprint-big-tech/
* https://www.sfexaminer.com/news/technology/ai-water-use-study-plastic-bottles/article_de4ac7e4-b5a9-4ba7-8b5d-226ba5f8be2d.html
Why do computing professionals and the organizations that represent our interests continue to ignore these harms?
All of these are in direct opposition to the @ACM_Ethics’s Code of Ethics—and, I’m sure, to other organizations’ codes of ethics. Why, then, are these organizations not sounding the alarm? Are these codes of ethics just feel-good words with no weight behind them?