Coming soon: The six million dollar fighting man?

With the mid-term Congressional election front and center on the national stage, the conflict in Iraq is dominating the dialogue on both sides of the political fence. And although I have very strong opinions about this "war," I've tried not to regale you with them too often - this just isn't the forum for that level of political debate...

However, there are goings-on directly relating to the Iraq War that could have major ramifications for the future, both in terms of wartime combat and everyday American life. Here's what I'm talking about:

In the desert sands of Saddam's former kingdom, advanced robotic technologies are getting a much-needed torture test - and succeeding phenomenally well, if battlefield reports are any indication. In fact, according to a Knight-Ridder News report from earlier this year, the Department of Defense (DOD) now estimates that 45% of tomorrow's long-range bombers will be able to fly without anyone on board. The Army plans to render a third of its combat vehicles unmanned by 2015. And the Navy has plans underway to develop a carrier-deployed pilot-less plane, and even an unmanned submarine...

I have to think that these plans have been in some way shaped - and very likely accelerated - by the successes of robotic weapons in the Iraq and Afghanistan campaigns. These high-tech fighting tools bear names like Talon, Shadow, Raven, Hunter, Pointer, and Sand Dragon, and the things they can do are fascinating. Consider:

• Camera-equipped, throw-able (or catapult-able) robots weighing only a couple of pounds are now being launched over fortified walls or into barricaded buildings to give field commanders views of enemy positions...
• "Hopper" robots that can jump as high as 50 feet in the air are being used to plant antennae (or even explosive devices) onto rooftops or into high trees to facilitate more effective battlefield communications...
• Durable, agile, unmanned mini-trucks known as MULEs (Multifunction Utility Logistics Equipment) tote hundreds of pounds of gear alongside soldiers in the field - freeing them to fight more swiftly and effectively...

According to the article, the Army had only 150 combat robots at the end of 2004 - yet will have 4,000 or more of them in the field by the end of this year. Soldiers love them and they're saving lives, according to a Colonel from the Pentagon's Robotic Systems Joint Project Office. Clearly, they're here to stay.

Critics point to the increased cost of robots over ordinary ground troops, and their tendency to malfunction or break down. However, the trend toward employing non-humans for battlefield jobs that are exceptionally hazardous bodes well for the civilian sector. Already, police and fire departments across the U.S. are using robots to explore and defuse hostile or potentially dangerous situations - things like live bombs, hostage standoffs, or precarious and smoke-filled burning buildings...

I've already written about the robotic technlogies currently in use in medicine (Daily Dose, 8/20/2004). Namely, the rise of robotic "doctors" to help care for patients - and even performing minor surgeries.

My point in mentioning all this is two-fold: First, because I find it fascinating and like to talk about it. Second, and more importantly, because the age of robotic humanity is no longer the province of fictionalists like Isaac Asimov, Ray Bradbury, and Philip K. Dick.

It's conceivable that in the not too far distant future, many (if not most) of the things people do for a living will be done by robots and machines. Already, factories and assembly lines are increasingly automated. The benefits are obvious: Machines don't get hurt, call in sick, steal, slack off - or require salaries, pensions, or insurance coverage.

How long will it be, I wonder, until there really are practical, functioning androids to do EVERY job under the sun?

And what will we all do for our livings when it happens?