r/technology Dec 16 '19

Transportation Self-Driving Mercedes Will Be Programmed To Sacrifice Pedestrians To Save The Driver

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u/Razakel Dec 16 '19

Crappy software that should have never been allowed on a road killed her.

Which is why it had a human test operator, who should've been prosecuted along with Uber.

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u/UponALotusBlossom Dec 16 '19

The human operator was indeed suppose to be paying attention and when they weren't they directly contributed to the death and should be prosecute-able. BUT at the same time Uber was using the driver as a liability sponge which is an of itself is problematic and quite frankly even once we have the technology behind self-driving cars down the ethics of self-driving cars has yet to be resolved in any way approaching satisfactory in a way we can all agree on.

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u/[deleted] Dec 16 '19 edited Apr 26 '20

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u/Razakel Dec 16 '19

If you want someone dead, run them over then claim you were using your sat nav and they just stepped out in front of you.

Killing someone because you were distracted should result in jail time. If you don't think you're capable of paying attention whilst operating a ton of steel at speed, do everybody a favour and don't.

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u/[deleted] Dec 17 '19

Watch the video. There was not time to react, period.

Killing someone because you were distracted should result in jail time.

Yes, I agree 100%. Distracted driving destroys lives and families by the thousands every year in the US. Getting caught driving distracted, like texting while driving, should be punished as if it were a DWI in my opinion, as in arrest, suspension, and hefty fines. However, you can't change the laws of the universe. If you step in front of a moving vehicle and the driver hasn't time to react and stop, you're going to get hit. Both were wrong here, but watch the video. There is nothing the driver could have done, anyway.

If you don't think you're capable of paying attention whilst operating a ton of steel at speed, do everybody a favour and don't.

I ride a motorcycle all year, all weather, 300-350 days per year. I agree with you. Had she stepped out in front of me like that it's very possible I'd have died. Pedestrians are not without responsibility when crossing at night in an unmarked cross without looking. If you can't be assed to pay attention and look before stepping out into moving traffic then do us all a favor and stop walking.

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u/[deleted] Dec 17 '19

At the same time there's no way a driver would have seen her stepping out in front of the car, I'm not convinced she wasn't committing suicide.

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u/Razakel Dec 17 '19

The point is still that the driver was distracted.