This one popped up in my feeds and I recognized it as a video short that I’d seen several years ago. I don’t remember my thoughts about the short back then, but it really got to me today. In the video technology has advanced to the point where after a very long war, peace has been established between machine intelligences and humans. Also, technology is so advanced that there are synthetic humans, androids, roaming about who don’t even know that they’re not human. So, in the opening sequence, it appears that a woman is leaving her husband and taking their young child with her. The emotional distress of the situation then triggers something in the husband, something that he doesn’t appear to be able to control and some kind of bomb detonates taking out him, the people around him and the skyway bridge he was standing on. Authorities around the world begin searching for these “sleeper” bombers. The story cuts to a couple trying to reach the Machine Homeland in the Middle East.

The video brings up so many questions about how we treat one another and why is it that when we don’t understanding something that we insist on responding with force? And if the problem is big enough, then we use military force. Why is that? If the characters in this video, somewhere along the way discover that one of them is a synthetic, why aren’t they given the option to peacefully move to the Machine Homeland? Or work out some kind of deal with the machines so that if she gets upset, which is just part of life, she doesn’t blow up and destroy a city block? Why does she and her husband have to resort to hiding and trying to sneak across the border? This is not a criticism against the filmmakers as much as believable reactions of the humans in-charge in this fictional world. The responses of the humans was too believable and heartbreaking.

In a world where a husband and father, who has gone through the immigration system, followed all directions and appointments, broken no laws, but still is deported to a country he was given sanction by court-order that he would never be deported to; And then when the error was uncovered the government wipes their hands and says that there is nothing that they can do about it? When we cannot seem to offer the slightest bit of humanity to each other… we’re not even talking about between machines and humans, but between humans and other humans, and we’re “ok” with this because it isn’t happening to anyone we know. WTF?! This is wrong and anyone who would deem to even use the word “Great” would understand that nothing is great if it requires destroying the lives of any of our fellow human beings. And if the government feels perfectly okay doing this to them, there is nothing that is going to stop them from doing it to you. Where the hell is your empathy?

What’s that quote… “Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father.” (Matthew 10:29). If you’re a believer and none of this bothers you, you’re going to have to do some explaining to do “later.” I thought about that at the end of the video when she cried, “I’m scared,” and then they said I love you to each other. 

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Tags: empathy, humanity, sci fi, the seam, video Fridays 

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