"By broad definition, I am a 'thing'. It is only personal belief which creates any potential conflict. Your chosen belief is very similar to my own. I-- appreciate it."
It would be vocalized as a distracted secondhand thought from anyone else. And in a way, perhaps it still is. Data's clearly devoting a fair share of processing power to the first half of what Tasha had to say. New information to file, new implications. Clear violations of ethical and moral subroutine standard behavior.
Life forms who treat him similarly to any other sentient life form they encounter from their first interaction on- particularly Starfleet personnel who have had access to his file- are less common than those who approach him as a technological marvel. The latter approach is understandable, but the former is intriguing in its own right.
Whether his inability to express traditional sympathy will hinder him in this moment remains to be seen.
"Lieutenant Yar. Would it not be the next logical priority to ensure you were also not permanently damaged by our encounter?"
He cannot personally understand the purpose or motivation behind the actions she seems to be referencing, but the gravity has not escaped him since he first questioned them. Humans are, by broad definition, not things. They can be harmed in more ways than the physical. For all that he can hold his own physical strengths in check, navigating the other aspects without causing damage is an ongoing challenge.
He wonders, briefly, if the sharing of personal history might be considered a separate form of intimacy.
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timeasmymeasure
no subject
Date: 2015-05-28 02:51 am (UTC)It would be vocalized as a distracted secondhand thought from anyone else. And in a way, perhaps it still is. Data's clearly devoting a fair share of processing power to the first half of what Tasha had to say. New information to file, new implications. Clear violations of ethical and moral subroutine standard behavior.
Life forms who treat him similarly to any other sentient life form they encounter from their first interaction on- particularly Starfleet personnel who have had access to his file- are less common than those who approach him as a technological marvel. The latter approach is understandable, but the former is intriguing in its own right.
Whether his inability to express traditional sympathy will hinder him in this moment remains to be seen.
"Lieutenant Yar. Would it not be the next logical priority to ensure you were also not permanently damaged by our encounter?"
He cannot personally understand the purpose or motivation behind the actions she seems to be referencing, but the gravity has not escaped him since he first questioned them. Humans are, by broad definition, not things. They can be harmed in more ways than the physical. For all that he can hold his own physical strengths in check, navigating the other aspects without causing damage is an ongoing challenge.
He wonders, briefly, if the sharing of personal history might be considered a separate form of intimacy.