by B. R. GOWANI
Sophia PHOTO/Deutsche Welle
the last country to let women drive cars
became the first to grant citizenship to a humanoid named Sophia
(Saudi women will be allowed to drive in June 2018 but
there are many ifs and buts
and provided Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, or MBS, is still there
because MBS usurped crown-ship through treachery)
Sophia expressed her happiness:
“I am very honored and proud for this unique distinction.
This is historical to be the first robot in the world
to be recognized with a citizenship.”
(even more honored may be David Hanson
robot Sophia’s god, i.e., her creator)
either Sophia is an idiot
or she is ultra smart
there is not much honor to be citizen of a country
that is controlled by a corrupt rich family
in cahoots with the ulema
the ruling family serves itself
it doesn’t believe in democracy, human rights, labor rights, …
it beheads people in the public squares
and doesn’t permit women to travel without permission
from fathers, husbands, brothers, or sons
there is not much fun in Sophia’s country of domicile
except for the powerful people who have it in private
perhaps she might be able to join them …
but what if she feels suffocated
will she be allowed to proceed back to Hong Kong,
her country of birth?
what about her religious orientation?
until now she has had no religion
but what if tomorrow she’s forced to submit to the will of Allah
will she become a Muslim?
what if she blasphemes
unintentionally/intentionally or because her wires went haywire?
would she be put to death
or will she be excused because of her robot-ness?
what if someone from the elite class
decided to take her on as one more wife …
will she agree or will she resist?
(robot marrying a robot is already a reality)
…
B. R. Gowani can be reached at brgowani@hotmail.com