The Hype on Robot Cars Deserves Great Skepticism

In the very same paper with a story about another car attack, this one in Germany, there's two pieces about robot cars. They use the same stock imagery and look like a coordinated PR effort by robot car interests.

But, you know, just wait until robot cars can be hijacked remotely and turned into lethal drones.

In the national news section

In the business section

Fortunately there is skepticism from several quarters. You don't have to go full Luddite to have real worries. (On the other hand, the popular image of Luddites may miss their broader critique of the systemic changes wrought by the nascent industrial revolution, and it may be we should return to that history for a closer, more nuanced, and more ambiguous reading.)

via Twitter

From the New York Times:

Experts who are skeptical about the unceasing forward march of technology say fatalities are rising because public officials have become so enamored with the shiny new thing, self-driving cars, that they have taken their eyes off problems they could be solving today. In the federal government and most states, there appears to be little interest in or patience for doing the tedious work of identifying and implementing policies and technologies with proven track records of saving lives now, as opposed to some time in the distant future.

And more:

• "This is the moment when we decide that human lives matter more than cars: Uber’s fatal Arizona crash is a call to action for cities" at Curbed
• "Self-Driving Cars and the Hostile Takeover of Our Streets" at American Conservative
• "Automated Vehicles Will Make Our Streets Worse" at Strong Towns