19th March 2004, 12:52 AM
I see, it's a matter of the expected level of responsibility, common knowledge regarding the dangers involved. Right, I get ya, and it makes sense too. Yes, that's right, a knife will generally not kill someone with the force of gravity alone. While they are capable of doing more damage than a gun, generally that can only be done with some sort of will guiding the blade. Someone would have to ADD force to the knife for it to do that damage, whereas a gun has the actual force built right into it. If knives fell with the same force as someone stabbing, then yes it would be just as deadly, or more so, in an accident, but you're correct, gravity simply won't be enough there. Perhaps if the entire cabinet fell on top of the knife, forcing it all the way through. However, honestly I can't imagine that happening purely by accident. If the knife was a sword, and a heavy one, propped in an unsafe place, then I can see fault as well. Let's say a large and heavy sword is hung over a doorway for looks. That person should be able to tell how dangerous that situation could be if the support pins for the sword came loose. If that sword did come loose and swing down and kill someone (assume it's heavy enough to give it the force needed), then I would in fact have to blame the guy who hung it up so precariously. If the sword was stored on a ceremonial rack however on top of a shelf of some kind, must less likely to do that, and it somehow happened anyway, it's more of a freak thing.
Yes, I see your point and agree. It's all a matter of common sense. If you can tell it's dangerous, or more to the point, if it's something most people would in fact consider dangerous or negligent, then you are being dangerous or negligent. Also, I'd hold someone negligent if they alone thought it was negligent and it happened, though most people might not think it so, like in the case of a scientist who is aware it was dangerous not to include those lines of code that kept the self aware robot from being able to kill.
Yes, I see your point and agree. It's all a matter of common sense. If you can tell it's dangerous, or more to the point, if it's something most people would in fact consider dangerous or negligent, then you are being dangerous or negligent. Also, I'd hold someone negligent if they alone thought it was negligent and it happened, though most people might not think it so, like in the case of a scientist who is aware it was dangerous not to include those lines of code that kept the self aware robot from being able to kill.
"On two occasions, I have been asked [by members of Parliament], 'Pray, Mr. Babbage, if you put into the machine wrong figures, will the right answers come out?' I am not able to rightly apprehend the kind of confusion of ideas that could provoke such a question." ~ Charles Babbage (1791-1871)