SHIT! (screencap, annotated by Betabeat)
Does the prospect of Skynet keep you awake at night? Well, now there's something you can do to fight your fears, besides chucking your Sarah Connor Chronicles DVDs. The BBC reports that yesterday, the Campaign to Stop Killer Robots officially launched in London.
The group is exactly what it sounds like. Founded by reps from nine different NGOs, including the Human Rights Watch, International Committee for Robot Arms Control and Nobel Women’s Initiative, the campaign wants a "pre-emptive and comprehensive ban" on fully autonomous weapons.
Building on a report released last fall, leaders are calling for an international treaty, plus national laws as needed.
The group's leader Jody Williams was upbeat about their prospects in an interview with the BBC, predicting that people will "flock" to the cause. She said:
"The public conscience is horrified to learn about this possible advance in weapons systems. People don't want killer robots out there. Normal human beings find it repulsive."
Bear in mind that the U.K. government has said it's got no intention of developing such weapons. Of course, that's what the government would say, isn't it?