Robots Are Being Used To Shoo Away Homeless People In San Francisco (qz.com) 422
An anonymous reader quotes a report from Quartz: San Francisco's Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) has been ordered by the city to stop using a robot to patrol the sidewalks outside its office, the San Francisco Business Times reported Dec. 8. The robot, produced by Silicon Valley startup Knightscope, was used to ensure that homeless people didn't set up camps outside of the nonprofit's office. It autonomously patrols a set area using a combination of Lidar and other sensors, and can alert security services of potentially criminal activity.
In a particularly dystopian move, it seems that the San Francisco SPCA adorned the robot it was renting with stickers of cute kittens and puppies, according to Business Insider, as it was used to shoo away the homeless from near its office. San Francisco recently voted to cut down on the number of robots that roam the streets of the city, which has seen an influx of small delivery robots in recent years. The city said it would issue the SPCA a fine of $1,000 per day for illegally operating on a public right-of-way if it continued to use the security robot outside its premises, the San Francisco Business Times said.
In a particularly dystopian move, it seems that the San Francisco SPCA adorned the robot it was renting with stickers of cute kittens and puppies, according to Business Insider, as it was used to shoo away the homeless from near its office. San Francisco recently voted to cut down on the number of robots that roam the streets of the city, which has seen an influx of small delivery robots in recent years. The city said it would issue the SPCA a fine of $1,000 per day for illegally operating on a public right-of-way if it continued to use the security robot outside its premises, the San Francisco Business Times said.
Humans! (Score:5, Funny)
EXTERMINATE! EXTERMINATE!
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I was thinking of something more like this [youtube.com]...
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Funny, IMHO it looks more like this one [nocookie.net].
Re:Humans! (Score:4, Insightful)
I was thinking SPCA https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/... [wikipedia.org], cough, cough, people are animals too. I wonder it they shoo away injured dogs, or have robots chase lost kittens, it's like seriously dude, check yourself, what the fuck. What you do, is guide them to the right organisations to provide them assistance, you do not treat them worse than stray dogs or cats. Only fucking America.
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They already know that every dollar that you donate to the SPCA is money that you're not using to help your fellow man. Something tells me they like all other animals more than people.
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No, they do actually help animals.
Re:Humans! (Score:5, Informative)
They have been doing something like this with kids for years in the UK. Instead of robots they have speakers outside the building that play classical music all day. The cool kids don't want to hang around asking people to buy them booze any more.
Of course, all it does is displace the problem.
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There's a parking garage close to where I live, and they play march music 24/7, to deter homeless people from sleeping there. It is rather surreal pulling in to park with the Liberty Bell March going at full tilt.
Re:Humans! (Score:5, Insightful)
There is no equivalency between displacing kids looking for alcohol and a supposedly compassionate organization buying a robot to (quite literally) inhumanely drive off people whom society has failed.
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What is the problem with trying to drive bums off and away from your place of business.
Having a bunch of bums begging, drugging drinking and passing out in front of your place of business, is bad for business and often unsafe for your employees and customers.
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drive off people whom society has failed
Living on the street without a home or a job? Here's some free advice:
1. Get a job. Any job. Minimum wage works just fine. All you need is a couple hundred bucks a month-- that's more than you were making when you didn't have a job isn't it? The harder you work at this job, the more overtime hours you put in, the faster you'll get out of poverty. If it were me I'd pick a job that would allow me to really shine through sheer work ethic. Fast-food is perfect for this because the competition are all teenagers
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You are just victim blaming here, and the real problem is that we have created a culture where homelessness is acceptable when there are some very real structural steps we could take as a society to fix these problems.
Re:Humans! (Score:5, Informative)
they choose
Really?
high prevalence of mental illnesses and other psychiatric disorders
-- https://jamanetwork.com/journa... [jamanetwork.com]
80% of respondents reported some form of mental health issue, 45% had been diagnosed with a mental health issue.
-- http://www.homeless.org.uk/fac... [homeless.org.uk]
Around 70 per cent of people accessing homelessness services have a mental health problem.
-- http://www.nhsconfed.org/resou... [nhsconfed.org]
Society has failed them, seriously?
Civilised society, yes.
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Do you understand the irony in an organization that openly takes in and cares for homeless animals using a glorified Roomba to drive off homeless humans. They spent donation money on a robotic sentry so that they didn't have to directly deal face-to-face with these people. It's sterile and disgusting and all the more so because of the fact that the SPCA is showing that they value the dignity of animals more than humans.
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Quick! Hide behind the discarded sofa!
Sadly, (Score:2, Insightful)
It's a problemtunity (Score:3, Funny)
There's homeless hackers who need robot parts, too. Won't someone think of the homeless hackers?
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This. They should just be more awesome like you are.
You are cayenne8, aren't you?
Re: It's a problemtunity (Score:4, Informative)
Actually, many of the homeless have varying degrees of mental illness. People on welfare often get stuck on it because they lose the benefits faster than earned income fills the gap.
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Yes because none of them would suffer their whole lives from fetal alcohol syndrome or anything.
Then perhaps all those Republicans who are hellbent on outlawing abortion because it "kills a person" should enact laws to penalize pregnant women who smoke, do drugs, drink excessively or are obese. After all, shouldn't poisoning their "child" for nine straight months count as child endangerment?
In fact, if they're so concerned about the "child" then they should make it a requirement for women to have twice mont
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I think that a larger chunk of them (in SF at least) suffer from schizophrenia than FAS, that has been my experience at least.
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Feel the impotence burn inside you...revel in your anger, it won't turn back on you, no sir.
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Calling everybody you disagree with a Nazi is sure to help spread your impotent rage. Keep it up.
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Nah, it'll be like last time, when the SJWs kicked their nazi asses back to cuntland.
Re:Sadly, (Score:4, Funny)
This is probably just the beginning.
Next step is to create a robot to shew away robots...
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This is probably just the beginning.
Next step is to create a robot to shew away robots...
I bet you could hire a homeless person on the cheap.
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Re:Sadly, (Score:5, Insightful)
Let's try to cut through the hyperventilating and click-bait headlines a bit, shall we?
First, keep in mind that the SPCA complex takes up an entire city block, and that they were having a real issue with safety and crime on their property. Prior to this, SPCA employees were literally not able to safely use some of the sidewalks due to discarded needles, obstructions, and so on.
Second, the robots are set to detect any illegal trespassing or activity, and simply report it to human security personnel. It's not like the robots have mounted tazers that drive the homeless out, running for their lives. In fact, people have vandalized the robots by tipping it over, covering its sensors with BBQ sauce or feces, etc. These robots are completely harmless, and in fact, are downright defenseless.
City Hall is great at lecturing others to be tolerant and risk their own safety while they can just nudge the police commissioner to quietly push homeless toward someplace where they don't have to look at them. I mean, we can't have homeless tents blocking off City Hall, right?
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It's not like the robots have mounted tazers that drive the homeless out, running for their lives.
Yet.
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What good jobs are there for someone with severe schizophrenia?
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That does it! (Score:2)
I'm gonna flood the place with homeless robots to counter.
Hmm... (Score:2)
Mr. Robot, meet Mr. Baseball Bat!
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So he's not homeless any more - problem solved!
Humans aren't animals? (Score:4, Insightful)
Re:Humans aren't animals? (Score:5, Funny)
To be fair, if spayed and neutered people this would be less of a problem.
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Are you suggesting that they keep stray humans in cages and try to get other humans to agree to care for them, until they run out of space in the cages and then euthanize them?
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Well, if we're not going to fund proper mental health care for them, that'd be more compassionate than leaving them to slowly starve or freeze to death while assaulting each other and engaging in substance abuse.
I think it's more important to spay and neuter the adult population first, though.
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Re:Humans aren't animals? (Score:4, Insightful)
Do they think that horses and cattle are deserving of their attentions but homeless humans aren't?
In short, yes, and they are part of a whole industry based around that idea. Humans enslave "lesser" animals and use them to enhance their sense of well-being in lieu of spending their time, energy, affection and even money on their fellow humans — who desperately need their help. Then they become more withdrawn, and less interested in engaging with other humans... The SPCA has to protect the idea that pets are more valuable than humans, or else humans might start spending their money on other humans instead of on their pets, and then the SPCA might cease to exist. All bureaucracies exist first and foremost (if not at first, then eventually) to self-perpetuate.
Re:Humans aren't animals? (Score:5, Insightful)
Oh for fucks sake.
(The below are generalizations, they tend to be true. I don't want to hear about an anecdote regarding noble Prince Hobo who'd never stoop to this kind of behavior.)
They leave their trash everywhere
They pester people going in and out for change (sometimes pretty fucking aggressively)
They absolutely deter people from going into a business
Even a non-profit like the SPCA should have the right to keep their entrance as inviting and usable as possible. Stow the virtue signaling outrage. If it was *your* office building, you'd more than likely sing a different tune.
Besides, a stray dog or cat did NOT CHOOSE that lifestyle.
Re:Humans aren't animals? (Score:5, Informative)
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I'm a retired 'Nam vet, 30% disabled, all Service Connected. My cat and my sister's dog are both rescued from the local Animal Shelter. And, I've seen the problems the homeless can cause by squatting in a neighborhood, and they're not pretty. However, using robots to chase them away isn't the answer, because it just leads to people smashing the robots to defend whatever little speck of space they're trying to use to sleep, that leads to the police coming in and it jus
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Re:Humans aren't animals? (Score:5, Informative)
I find it bizarre that SPCA has funds for homeless-shooing robots.
TFA sez the robot costs $6/hr to rent. Min wage is $14/hr.
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I find it bizarre that SPCA has funds for homeless-shooing robots.
TFA sez the robot costs $6/hr to rent. Min wage is $14/hr.
How much does it cost to repair a robot smashed with a baseball bat?
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I'd imagine that'd be an issue for the rental company, not the one doing the renting.
Good and Stop Reviving Them When They OD (Score:2, Interesting)
Have your way with me mods, I've got karma to burn!
The homeless population in San Fran is a massive problem. I've had my car's window smashed three times over the course of four years for trivial crap i've left in my car. Seriously, they really think that my FM transmitter and 75 cents are worth something? And this is in Portrero FFS.
You consistently see these animals constantly shooting up, leaving needles everywhere, pissing in the street, and hassling you for money. They're a blight and the city's permis
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The homeless population in San Fran is a massive problem. I've had my car's window smashed three times over the course of four years for trivial crap i've left in my car. Seriously, they really think that my FM transmitter and 75 cents are worth something? And this is in Portrero FFS.
So what? I lived in Bernal Heights and my whole car got stolen. You know why? Because no part of San Francisco is far from a ghetto. You know why that is? Because our whole society is sick from stem to stern. We get more satisfaction out of blowing people off than helping them. We've learned to be happy when we make people make a frowny face, instead of a smile.
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The SPCA is a classic example of that. See TFA
Re:Good and Stop Reviving Them When They OD (Score:5, Insightful)
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The homeless population in San Fran is a massive problem. I've had my car's window smashed three times over the course of four years for trivial crap i've
Have you ever wondered why? Perhaps all drugged out animals in America are attracted to the golden gate bridge? They just...ah... naturally tend to congregate there?
left in my car. Seriously, they really think that my FM transmitter and 75 cents are worth something? And this is in Portrero FFS.
Feel the same way about v1agra spam... seriously how does anyone make money off this shit?
You consistently see these animals constantly shooting up, leaving needles everywhere, pissing in the street, and hassling you for money. They're a blight and the city's permissive attitude towards them only encourages more to show up.
It's time we stop wasting money on these animals when they OD with Naloxone. If they want to drug themselves to the point of death, let them. It's time we let Darwin do his work.
Zap them, beat them, lock them up and forcibly detox them from whatever drug they love, I don't care. It's high time vagrancy is treated the same way the homeless treat our communities, with reckless abandonment.
Have you done anything to build consensus to make government change it's insane policies? Anything at all to address underlying causes? BTW what's average home in San Fran running these days? A cool mil?
In the real world literally beating down symptoms
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Started passing out dollar store tasers (Score:2)
those 5 dollar tasers at dollar store are coming in great. Passing those out to homeless and told to short out any robot they see.
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5 dollar tasers at dollar store are coming in great.
They only sell those at the five-dollar store.
Come on, this just has to be some ... (Score:2)
... seriously hilarious grey-hat hacker prank waiting to happen. I suspect bananapeels won't cut it, put I'm sure that plastic tarp, sailfishing string, graphite spray/powder, oil, spray-paint, craltops, remote controlled tilt-ramps, duct-tape, wall-to-wall carpeting tape, some other trinkets and perhaps even some more elaborate wireless/mobile connection hacking can produce balls of fun with this partolbot. Or some way to mislead it into a pit or curb with fake portable walls or something.
Don't tell me you
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going to go out on a limb here and suggest that a Faraday cage is not part of most homeless peoples' daily carry.
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It's already happened, friend. If you scroll to the bottom of the article, you will find that the patro
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I just have to wonder did it say in a raspy metallic voice "vision inpaired, I can not see!"?
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No, it said, "Please stop resisting" and then, "Please drop your weapon" and then shot and killed the unarmed naked man crawling away on his hands and knees begging not to be shot.
Phoenix police just put in an order for 200 of the robots.
Shoo, Robots (Score:5, Funny)
San Francisco recently voted to cut down on the number of robots that roam the streets of the city, which has seen an influx of small delivery robots in recent years. The city said it would issue the SPCA a fine of $1,000 per day for illegally operating on a public right-of-way if it continued to use the security robot outside its premises
Maybe the city should hire the homeless people to shoo away the robots, and issue tickets.
Is this for real? (Score:2)
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People... (Score:2)
SF SPCA reasoning from the article (Score:2)
âoeWe werenâ(TM)t able to use the sidewalks at all when thereâ(TM)s needles and tents and bikes, so from a walking standpoint I find the robot much easier to navigate than an encampment,â Jennifer Scarlett, the S.F. SPCAâ(TM)s president, told the Business Times.
Suggestion: Reopen Mental Hospitals (Score:5, Insightful)
It's very strange that the SPCA of all organizations is acting like that rich tech bro a few years back who published a diatribe about how the homeless people on his building's street weren't being sufficiently controlled by the city.
My idea for fixing the problem is to re-open state mental hospitals. Almost all of the homeless problem is due to mental illness and drug addiction. Where I live, there are 5 massive, closed mental hospital complexes within 50 miles that housed thousands of patients each before the deinstitutionalization wave of the 70s and 80s. Why not reopen them as voluntary treatment centers again? Instead of beating and lobotomizing patients, give them the help they need to fix whatever problem is interfering with them having a normal existence.
Re:Suggestion: Reopen Mental Hospitals (Score:4)
It's very strange that the SPCA of all organizations is acting like that rich tech bro ....
Not really.... they're being perfectly reasonable. The public access right of way is the public access right of way, not the personal property of homeless people ----- it's public so you can move through that area to go about your business, not so people can takeover that spot and sit there causing interference with others. Some person's lack of a home doesn't give them a right to setup tents and long-term camp your body at the entrance to someone else's facility.
So the $1000/day fine for the robot makes sense, so long as the authorities are also aggressively issuing such fines and law enforcement actions against any individuals setting up camp or tents.
Another suggestion: move past the drug myth (Score:5, Informative)
Nah, it's about poverty. If drug addiction lead to homelessness, Robert Downy Jr. and Lindsey Lohan would have moved into cardboard boxes decades ago.
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If you watch the homeless people, a fair percentage of the older ones will be showing obvious signs of tardive dyskinesia (AKA the thorazine shuffle). They were in the mental institutions before they closed and were tossed out on the streets without regard for their ability to take care of themselves.
Next . . . (Score:2)
They'll just switch to very large bug zappers . . .
A million great jokes (Score:2)
and I can't think of one!
or... (Score:2)
they could just install a few speakers outside and play a really annoying song over and over.
Illegally on public property? (Score:2)
...for illegally operating on a public right-of-way...
If it's public property, how can you be illegally on it? I know you can take over/block public sidewalks (well, unless you are homeless, then SF and other liberal cities don't give a rip), but how is a roaming robot illegally on a public sidewalk?
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Irony... A ticket and fine for the robot in a public area, nothing for the homeless loitering and interfering with businesses.
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Why should you ticket people who are already in an unfortunate situation? I don't think anyone is homeless by choice.
How do they prevent the homeless from congregating around City Hall? Are they forcibly removing these people who are already in an unfortunate situation?
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I hardly think that government policies encourage people to sleep on the street. Other than policies which pump up housing prices and remove affordable housing from the market, but I don't see those as "enabling sloth."
Are you proposing bringing back the workhouses from Dickens? If yes, go fuck yourself.
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Arbeit macht frei?
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My dad was veteran who fought the Nazis. He lead a very successful life. Both my parents were veterans of WWII and Korea. They weren't drunks or drug addicts, and both worked hard all there life.
Today's veterans have a couple choices: 1) suck it up, and act line a man, 2) become a homeless drug addict, or 3) go on a shooting rampage, mowing down as many strangers as possible.
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How fortunate for them. Some people come through better than others, and some wars are worse than others.
I know a guy who got struck by lightning and suffered no ill effects. According to your reasoning, the only natural conclusion is that lightning is harmless and anyone who seems to have died from it is just malingering.
Comment removed (Score:5, Informative)
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4. re-draft all economically useless veterans. throw 'em in a C-17 and just drop them on whatever the fashionable target is, en masse. blacken the sky with the screaming doomed, now that's "shock and awe".
it's been thought of.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/When_the_People_Fell
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My dad was veteran who fought the Nazis.
These days that would be described as "Committing alt-left violence against some Very Fine People."
That would be funnier if the Nazis hadn't based many of their policies on the American Progressive movement. The left wing loved Hitler [nydailynews.com].
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I would include more, but most of the references are from authors that I am sure you would immediately reject.
Indeed, because it would take a historical revisionist to suggest that there was something particularly "leftist" about support for eugenics when it found support widely across the political spectrum.
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No; a couple means one or two. A few means three or four.
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You're making it sound like the homeless are all veterans. Sure there are homeless veterans, but let's not try to explain homelessness as a veteran problem. The thing is, this 'veterans have trouble adjusting' schtick is a recent thing. We had millions of men in uniform for WW II and many of them saw really bad stuff. A few came back with what was termed "shell shock" (I knew 2 of them) but millions adjusted just fine. Now that PTSD is a 'thing' suddenly we have thousands and thousands of veterans thus affe
Re:Many veterans end up homeless (Score:4, Interesting)
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Among extensive debates with a young-ish Japanese Senpai about WWII, we last concluded that even though I did not know a single person that suffers serious injury (mental and physical) that's suppo
Re:Many veterans end up homeless (Score:4, Insightful)
People coming home from WWII got ticket tape parades and a booming economy. In an era where a high school diploma could net you a decent job, they had advanced training on top of that. As a society, it was understood that the women pressed into the work force by necessity would be vacating those jobs en-masse as soon as the troops came home. Even manual laborers made enough for a single income to modestly support a married couple.
Does any of that ring true for Vietnam?
Gulf veterans get respect, but no booming economy, no jobs being vacated, and everyone thinks you need a degree to pump gas (I'm only slightly exaggerating on the last one).
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In what way does fighting in Afghanistan give us freedom?
Initially it would have been to go after Osama Bin Laden, the guy who planned the worst terrorist attack on U.S. soil.
However, when, for two days, Bush refused every single request [bbc.com] by troops on the ground for more troops [nytimes.com] to block Bin Laden's escape from Tora Bora because troops weren't available as he was preparing to invade Iraq [gpo.gov], that issue went by the wayside.
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Then maybe he could have taken up the Taliban on their offer to hand over Bin Laddin [theguardian.com] if they provided some evidence that he was actually guilty of what the U.S. was accusing him of. Iraq wasn't the only bullshit war to come out of the Bush Administration.
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Nope. The robot is rented at a rate below minimum wage. RTFA