touch foxglove NOW 
Alright, no more discussion of the limits of free trade. Let's talk about technology. I saw a lively debate on here between @TheTroubleWithPibbles,
@August,
@Geralt_of_Uganda, etc, about whether it is ethical to develop technologies...
Scenario
This, of course, actually happened
J. Robert Oppenheimer was a brilliant scientist.
being so brilliant, he was able to conceive of, and help build, the greatest weapon known to mankind - the atomic bomb.
Oppenheimer, of course, didn't know the long term consequences of developing such a weapon - but he understood the sheer destructive potential of such a device.
Your question is: Was Oppenheimer acting ethically by assisting to develop the atomic bomb?
NOTE: In this hypothetical, history is at a crossroads. You don't know what will happen in the future - whether the device you created will be used to end life on earth or to usher in a new golden age.
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IDIOT. It is ethical. Oppenheimer had no idea how the weapon was going to be used - he created it, and left it to the hands of the military to decide how to use it. He didn't kill anyone.
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NUMBNUTS. It is unethical. You say he didn't know how the weapon was going to be used, but he did - he knew it was going to be used to kill people. He enabled the government to use this weapon of mass destruction, and they did - the responsibility is solely upon him (and the other collaborators).
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