
The Man Who Made the UK Say “I’m Sorry for What We Did to Turing” (2014) - jgrahamc
https://backchannel.com/the-man-who-made-the-uk-say-im-sorry-for-what-we-did-to-turing-8fc468dcea6b
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jgrahamc
I realize that this is an old story, but I posted it because Steven Levy is
the best interviewer to have ever spoken to me about the Turing apology and
this article the most accurate, and because someone reminded me of it today.

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packetized
I'm sure there are those who would shout cries of 'self-aggrandizement!' about
you submitting this, but instead I'd like to offer my sincere thanks for doing
so, and even deeper thanks for taking this on as a cause years ago. Bravo.

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jgrahamc
Don't thank me. I think the takeaway is go do something amazing because it's
possible to do so!

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gigatexal
Regardless of who was the true father of computing, Von Neumann or Turing, or
any of that: what the UK government did to a patriot who was instrumental in
helping win the war was atrocious in its own right gay or not. And I honestly
believe the government got off easy in only issuing an apology. I don't know
what a commensurate action would have been but an apology just seems fleeting
and a lot like a cop-out.

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jm__87
I mean, it is likely that no one in the UK government in 2009 even knew Turing
or had anything to do with his persecution. The UK decriminalized homosexual
acts between men in 1967 and added further legislation in 1994 and 2000. More
likely some of the people in government in 2009 had helped draft the most
recent legislation and had no problem with Turing being a homosexual...

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vertex-four
On the other hand, the Government as an organisational entity is a direct
continuation from past Governments which did terrible things. Organisations
are not just the people who currently make them up - they're long-living
entities in their own right with sometimes vast history that resulted in what
they are today. The organisation - and the people in it - shouldn't get to
reap the benefits of its history while simultaneously ignoring anything
harmful it might've done.

