At one point, Haag makes the bizarre claim that Winchester
rifles developed a will of their own; or perhaps this Yale Ph.D. does not know
what “volition” is. “Speed (not power)
and accuracy from a distance were the mechanical soul of all Winchesters. With each design advance, the volition of the
rifle became more volitional.” “Volition”
refers to “making a choice”[1];
was Winchester making the earliest intelligent robotic gun? No.
Haag clearly believes that the finger doesn’t pull the trigger; the
trigger pulls the finger.
“Small, mortal operations of armed conflict
occurred through the technological ingenuity of the mechanical hand, and the
confrontation became less intimate or physically immediate. The gun ‘did’ more of the motions and actions
of the killing.”[2] “Instead, people and animals were shot
faster, at greater distances, with a more mechanically volitional weapon.”[3]
Again, human agency has been replaced by gun
agency. While this may make Haag feel
better, blaming the gun and thus the gun maker, not the shooter; it is pretty
clearly delusional thinking.
[1]
“Volition” definition; https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/volition,
last accessed December 29. 2016.
[3] Id., at 203.
No comments:
Post a Comment