There have been some interesting and to be quite honest, quite scary pieces of news that have emerged over the last few weeks.

The more recent, concerns the risk to humanity from the unfettered development of AI and the recognition by several high-profile tech bosses that perhaps it’s time to put the brakes on.  It’s not worth discussing the reaction from some political quarters, you all know who I mean, so I won’t.  The point is this, humankind could theoretically and with increasingly likely odds, be wiped out by AI.  As one of the tech bosses explained, imagine setting AI the problem of solving climate change and global warming (The same person that states AI is not a problem, thinks global warming doesn’t exist either).  AI identifies the problem is caused by humans and decides the best way of solving the problem and saving the planet is to do away with humans. That is all very logical, but we would all agree, well most anyway, that the solution might be found in something a little less draconian.  This made me think, what would AI make of the financial problems faced by the NHS for instance?  Would it examine the burgeoning costs of the elderly? Perhaps there is a cut off point for their care, maybe this is tied into their usefulness to society. Horror, that we might be considering such things, but there is a logic to it and AI works on logic. However, it defies notions of humanity and the sanctity of life.  Once we start on that road, where do we stop, the disabled, the seriously ill, the intellectually challenged?  Uncontrolled use of AI logic without human emotion is starting to sound like well documented historical humanitarian nightmares.

Now you might think where do immigrants fit into this?

The recent news about the RNLI getting flak from far right wing activists for rescuing immigrants on a boat has certainly raised a few eyebrows.  I’m still trying to understand the logic of calling someone a traitor for doing what they are supposed to do, rescue people and I’m lost for words that so many people fall in behind this rhetoric. But for now, just assume that I go along with the ‘stop the boats’ mantra and believe that the immigrants coming into this country on boats cause mayhem and go on crime sprees and rape and pillage with no regard to the law and that the state is powerless to stop them.  We are all doomed.  But I have this little niggle in the back of my mind, is the problem not either, at the other side of the channel where they embark on their perilous journey or, at this side of the channel when they disembark?   A rather simplistic summation of a geopolitical problem but suffice to say for the sake of the argument, the problem is not in the channel itself other than a danger the immigrants present to themselves and shipping.  The RNLI are there to rescue people from the water and have been for a very long time.  What are they to do?  It would be inhumane to ignore people in the sea if they were in difficulties, it would be inhumane to simply watch people in a dangerous situation until they got into difficulties (wait until the boat sinks then try to rescue a few of them).  Even the hard of heart must surely want to save children and young people.  Turn them back I’ve heard said.  And just how should that be done? A group of volunteers trying to take desperate rescued people back to where they came from?  Perhaps we should employ the navy to do so and risk them all drowning (more far right-wing nonsense).  Where is the humanity in all of this? The RNLI crews are morally bound to do what they do, rescue people and bring them ashore safely.   Blocking a port so that immigrants cannot be transferred inland to a detention centre defies logic.  What are you going to do with them?  Drive them back into the sea? Turning on the RNLI and its volunteers seems as illogical as attacking the fire brigade at a fire.  I know, it has been known and beggars’ belief.

Would AI suggest that the problem is the RNLI? Logically that doesn’t seem to work unless of course you state that the RNLI’s remit is to save lives at sea providing, they are lives that are deemed worthy of saving, i.e., not immigrants with Black or brown skins.  

Where do we stop with this? A person injured in a collision on the road is only entitled to help from the emergency paramedics if they are entitled to be in this country? Sounds like we are going to need to carry around ID cards of some sort and woe betide if you have a foreign accent and have a darker skin shade.  You need to have your ID tattooed on your head just in case or maybe wear some form of badge.  

The rhetoric of the far right, regarding a perceived problem that, incidentally, has no easy solution, is to stir up racial hatred.  More reminiscent of historical humanitarian nightmares. 

Uncontrolled use of AI and uncontrolled right-wing rhetoric and action are not that different. Unless someone works out how to herd the sheep in a different direction, humanity is doomed.

L-R Nazi Propaganda, a Robot Head and a RNLI Tamar Class Lifeboat