tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9044826704035279962.post8588178071824851237..comments2024-03-28T17:16:25.333-04:00Comments on Mad Padre: Soldiers And Their Lovable (And Costly) RobotsMad Padrehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00410143683610813671noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9044826704035279962.post-88524261627323118682013-09-25T03:47:56.311-04:002013-09-25T03:47:56.311-04:00I don't think that in the short-medium term th...I don't think that in the short-medium term this is going to pose a great problem. Soldiers always anthropomorphise things - an unseen enemy, distant FNG-type HQs, comms problems, shortages of food... in short it's part of a soldiers' armoury of mental and moral tools to deal with being in a warzone which have existed for thousands of years. The only reason this generates controversy is because it's visually similar to nightmare scenarios depicted in popular culture.<br /><br />Soldiers get mentally attached to each other in a warzone - while that has some negative effects when casualties are suffered (such as short term anger/pain and longer term combat stress issues), overall it's a big part of the moral component of fighting power. Extending this to machines (at least to the point referred to in this article, ie naming them and getting upset when they're destroyed) is going to bring a few negative effects but all the positives of comradeship are going to be applied in this area too. Colonel Scipiohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02632701529009379584noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9044826704035279962.post-37668233011197318522013-09-24T22:55:47.660-04:002013-09-24T22:55:47.660-04:00By all means, read Keith Lamar's "Bolo&qu...By all means, read Keith Lamar's "Bolo" novels and see his take on operators identifying with their machines.Grenzer Johnhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07294380876807418037noreply@blogger.com