Cathy O’Neil on Weapons of Math Destruction

Re:Cathy O’Neil on Weapons of Math Destruction by munificent on Wednesday October 05, 2016 @02:08PM (#12646261)

In capitalist terms, a perfect market will optimize for the world as it is. Many people think of businesses as simply animals that compete in an immutable environment and may the best one win. And then, especially in the US, somehow that observation takes on the weight of moral certitude and now we think it's somehow right for businesses to do that.

But the world is not immutable. And if we silently allow companies to optimize for the unjust world of today, we make it harder to build a more just world for tomorrow.

Denying loans to people of color may be price optimal today, but that's true only to the degree that the world of today sucks. We should fix that, not optimize for it.

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Re:Cathy O’Neil on Weapons of Math Destruction by icebraining on Wednesday October 05, 2016 @02:44PM (#12646593)

Sure, but there's still a question on how to fix that. Should we prevent these companies from applying more targeted models, and hence impose a tax on the random subset of consumers who happen to use the same services? Or should we take tax money, which is taken from everyone in a democratically decided way, to help people of color get loans?

Or to put it more specifically, why should a middle-class white family have to pay higher rates on their loan to help some family of color get a loan, while the rich white family that buys the house outright doesn't?

Shouldn't we help people of color using a system that distributes the costs in a widespread and progressive way?

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