When will an Artificial Intelligence Agent declare humans too dangerous drivers and too dumb emission measurers?

Sir, I refer your “From diesel emissions to omitting the driver” January 15.

It is clear, not withstanding only one side will pay for it, that in the case of the failed carbon emission controls, both the measured and the measurers are to blame. Any regulation, if it fails in any shape or form, should bring on some consequences for the regulators… let us say a 50% salary reduction.

As is, just look at the case of bank regulators, those who set risk weights of 20% for what is AAA-rated, and 150% for what is below BB- rated. That evidenced they had (have) no clue about what they were doing; and so they caused the AAA rated securities backed with mortgages to the subprime sector crisis. But they are still going to Davos, flying business class the least, to lecture the world on what to do. 

It is also clear that one of the biggest challenges for the safety of driverless cars is that these might also encounter human drivers on the road. So either is the driverless-cars equipped with software that handles human-driving whims, or, sooner or later, some Artificial Intelligence Agent will take us humans off the road. Is that good or bad?

My answer to that question goes somewhat along this line. If absolutely all humanity is taken off the road, and so we all lose entirely the abilities needed to drive, so be it. But, if some humans were still allowed to drive, why would I want those to be somebody else’s grandchildren and not mine? 

PS. About driverless cars, the issue of how to tax these, so as not to lose out on the taxes we currently collect, for instance from PhDs driving taxes in New York, is also pending.

@PerKurowski

If VW were a pupil in the European Boarding School… whom would we blame, VW or the headmaster of that school?

Sir, Richard Milne at the end of his report of Volkswagen’s woes writes: VW makes about the same number of cars as Toyota – but has almost double the number of workers – 593.000 to 344.000”, I guess then that 249.000 workers would not be in total agreement with the titling of the report: “System failure” November 5. You just cannot have the cake and eat it too.

It must be quite clear that to overcome such a competitive disadvantage, VW had to resort to other means… in this case clearly not so elegant or legal means. Do I condone it? Of course not, but let's keep the debate real. The trade off between carbon emissions and jobs is very much out there in the real world.

But let us now also suppose VW was a pupil in the European Boarding School. If it had acted this way, blatantly infringing regulations during years… whom would we blame, VW or the headmaster of that school?

Or should 249.000 potential Toyota workers want Toyota bosses to cheat on the headmaster too?

@PerKurowski ©

VW & emissions & controls: Fines for allowing itself to be tricked, should not become a revenue source for governments

The more I read about the Volkswagen affair the more convinced I become of that, what really does not bring anything to the table in terms of justice, economic efficiency or even sustainability, is having VW to pay huge fines to a government that hosted such inefficient emission controllers who allowed themselves to be tricked by clearly immoral but also quite ingenious engineering tricks.

On reading Richard Milne’s “Wolfsburg fears fallout from VW scandal” October 12 this is what I would suggest:

Decide on a substantial amount to fine Volkswagen for their misbehavior, but make it pay all that fine by issuing (green) shares in Volkswagen, to all who bought its diesel cars and to all of its employees. That way you do not weaken a company, or a city, while at the same time, presumably, you introduce among VW’s shareholders a wish for a better corporate behavior, so as not having their shareholder participation further diluted.

And then, just how you use hackers to assist you in building safety features for increased cyber-security condemn, all the Volkswagen engineers responsible for the misdeeds, to social work, by developing emission controls that work.

PS. This is somewhat similar to the fines on banks, which directly hurts their lending capacity, precisely when we need it the most.

@PerKurowski ©  J

World/Germany: Don’t fine Volkswagen for the benefit of those who should have controlled emissions better. Be smarter.

Sir, I refer to Chris Bryant’s “New VW chief signals cost cuts to pay for emissions bill” October 7.

If I were Volkswagen’s new chief executive, I would not accept, laying down, to “slash costs to help to foot the bill for the diesel emission scandal” No way! I would strengthen Volkswagen by making a counteroffer the world could not resists… because of its implications.

I would offer the authorities, in lieu of any fines related to The Scandal, to give to each of VW’s 600.000 employees, and to each of 11.000.000 of VW’s diesel car buyers, for example €1.000 in Volkswagen preferred "green" shares, convertible into ordinary VW shares.

And, if the offer was accepted, I would not waste one € correcting wrongdoings on the past, but instead duplicate the € 11,5bn research budget of last year.  But, that’s just me.

I dare you to find one environmentally concerned, who is not a statist, who would not agree with me.

PS. Volkswagen, don't delay your answer... the faster the better.

@PerKurowski ©  J

When paid by Volkswagen, the fines should go to patent free research of better diesel engines… and emission controls

Sir, Brooke Masters write “Drivers who bought VW’s “clean diesel” engines are now faced with technical fixes that could well reduce both fuel efficiency and power. Their communities have much dirtier than anticipated air” “Lawsuit on behalf of 1m $1 investors is something to fear. Somebody ought to sue” October 3.

Indeed but when suing make sure that if you win it can make a difference, not just make up for something secondary.

Many Volkswagen’s diesel engine buyers, who said they bought it out of environmental concern, many of them just green show-offs, now have a legitimate grievance being left out hanging like fools. But, if they are going to sue, they should at least request that, if successful, all fines paid by VW should go to finance the development of patent free better diesel motors.

Brooke Master’s also writes: “There are many frivolous [and not non frivolous] law suites were the attorneys on both sides walked away with millions of dollars in fees”. And with that she reminds me of that, at least in the case of banks being sued, all lawyers should be paid their fees in bank shares… I mean so that we do not hurt the lending capacity of banks and with that of ten thousands of innocent bystanders borrowers… the sort of civilian casualties.

Perhaps if we start looking into the issue of where compensation payments and fees go to, and how it is paid, then perhaps we will start looking at tort reform from a much more productive angle.

@PerKurowski