新冠陰謀論漸失控 德當局戒備

Germany’s domestic-intelligence service said late last month that it would surveil members of the increasingly aggressive coronavirus-denier movement because they posed a risk of undermining the state.

德國政府的國內情報部門四月底表示，將對日益激進的新冠病毒否定運動組織成員進行監控，因為他們構成破壞國家安定的風險。

The movement — fueled in part by wild conspiracy theories — has grown from criticizing coronavirus lockdown measures and hygiene rules to targeting the state, its leaders, businesses, the news media and globalism, to name a few. Over the past year, demonstrators have attacked police officers, defied civil authorities and, in one widely publicized episode, scaled the steps of Parliament.

這個運動部分是由荒誕的陰謀論所搧起，正持續擴大，從批判新冠病毒封城措施與相關衛生規定起頭，進而又把矛頭指向國家、國家領導人、企業、新聞媒體和全球主義等等。過去一年來，示威者曾攻擊警官，反抗內政當局，並在眾所周知的一樁事件中，衝上國會大廈的台階。

“Our basic democratic order, as well as state institutions such as parliaments and governments, have faced multiple attacks since the beginning of the measures to contain the COVID-19 pandemic,” the Interior Ministry said in a statement confirming that parts of the denier movement were under observation. The Interior Ministry oversees the intelligence agency, called the Office for the Protection of the Constitution.

內政部在聲明中說，「抑制新冠肺炎疫情的措施展開以來，我們的基本民主秩序以及諸如各級議會和政府等國家機構，已面臨多次攻擊。」此一聲明證實已將否定新冠運動組織的部分成員列為觀察對象。內政部下轄情報機構，也就是聯邦憲法保護局。

In announcing the decision to keep tabs on conspiracy theorists, intelligence officials noted the movement’s close ties to extremists such as the Reichsbürger, who refuse to accept the legitimacy of the modern German state.

宣布監控陰謀論者的決定之際，情報官員特別指出，這個運動和極端分子有密切關聯，例如拒絕接受現代德國合法性的「帝國公民」組織。

Many coronavirus deniers say they also believe in QAnon conspiracy theories, and protesters are frequently seen holding signs with anti-Semitic tropes.

許多新冠病毒否定論者說，他們同時也相信匿名者Q陰謀論，而抗議者常被看到舉著反猶太標語牌。

The movement, Querdenken, which is German for lateral thinking, communicates and recruits over social media and has a large presence on the encrypted chat service Telegram, where its main channel has 65,000 subscribers.Parts of AfD, a German right-wing populist party that is also under surveillance, have allied themselves with protesters.

在德語中意為「橫向思考者」的這個組織，透過社群媒體傳播並招募成員，並在加密聊天軟體Telegram上相當活躍，主頻道有6.5萬訂閱者。同樣在受監控之列的德國右派民粹政黨「德國另類選擇黨」，有部分成員已和橫向思考抗議者結盟。

Still, the Interior Ministry took pains to say that the danger from coronavirus deniers and conspiracy theorists does not fit the mold posed by the usual, politically driven groups, including those on the far left and right, or by Islamic extremists. As a result, the authorities are setting up a new department specifically tasked with handling cases that seek to delegitimize the state.

不過內政部仍煞費苦心地說，來自新冠病毒否定者和陰謀論者的危險，和極左、極右等等具政治動機的常見團體或伊斯蘭極端分子，模式並不相符。因此，當局將設立一個新的部門，專責處理試圖否定國家法律地位的案件。

The news comes days after Germany instituted new virus rules that apply nationwide and allow the federal government to enforce lockdowns. It also suggests that the authorities believe coronavirus-denier groups could continue to flourish and pose a threat after the pandemic ends.

德國是在實施新防疫規定的數天後發布了這則消息，這些通行全國的新規定允許聯邦政府強制封城。此舉也意味，當局認為疫情結束後否認疫情團體仍可能持續活躍並構成威脅。

侵權爭議大 紐約機器警犬計畫喊卡

When the New York Police Department acquired a robotic dog last year, officials heralded the four-legged device as a futuristic tool that could go places that were too dangerous to send officers.

當紐約市警局去年獲得一隻機器犬時，官員預告，這個四條腿的裝置是個未來性工具，能去因太過危險而無法派警員前往的地方執勤。

“This dog is going to save lives,” Inspector Frank Digiacomo of the department’s Technical Assistance Response Unit said in a television interview in December. “It’s going to protect people. It’s going to protect officers.”

「這隻狗將可拯救生命。」警局技術協助反應小組巡官法蘭克•狄吉亞柯摩去年12月接受電視訪問時說，「它將能保護民眾，它將能保護警察。」

Instead, the machine, which the police named Digidog, became a source of heated debate. After it was seen being deployed as part of the response to a home invasion in the Bronx in February, critics likened it to a dystopian surveillance drone. And when officers used it at a public-housing building in Manhattan this month, a backlash erupted again, with some people describing the device as emblematic of how overly aggressive the police can be when dealing with poor communities.

然而，這個被警方取名為「數位犬」的機器，卻成了引發激烈爭論的源頭。今年2月它奉派加入處理布朗克斯區一樁住宅入侵案的團隊，批評者將它與敵托邦無人偵察機相提並論。而當警察本月在一棟國宅使用它時，反彈再度爆發，有些人表示，這個裝置具體說明了警方在處理貧窮社區事務時侵犯性有多麼過分。

Now, the robotic dog’s days in the city have quietly been cut short.

如今，這隻機器犬在這座城市的日子已悄悄地提前結束了。

In response to a subpoena from City Councilman Ben Kallos and Council Speaker Corey Johnson requesting records related to the device, police officials said a contract worth roughly $94,000 to lease the robotic dog from its maker, Boston Dynamics, had been terminated April 22.

紐約市議員班•卡洛斯和議長柯瑞•強生發出傳票，要求警局交出和這個裝置有關的紀錄，警局官員回應時表示，以9萬4000美元向製造商「波士頓動力公司」租用機器犬的合約，已於4月22日終止。

John Miller, the Police Department’s deputy commissioner for intelligence and counterterrorism, confirmed late last month that the contract had been canceled and that the dog had been returned to Boston Dynamics or would be soon.

警局主管情報與反恐的副局長約翰•米勒四月底證實，合約已經取消，機器犬已還給波士頓動力公司，或即將交還。

In an interview, Miller said that the lease had been scheduled to end in August and that the police had planned to test the robotic dog’s capabilities until then. The department changed its plans, he said, after the device became a “target” for people who he said had improperly used it to fuel arguments about race and surveillance.

米勒受訪時說，租約原應於8月結束，警方也計畫測試機器犬的能力直到租約結束。他表示，然而在這個裝置成為箭靶，被一些有心人不恰當的用來挑起關於種族和監視的爭論之後，警局改變了計畫。

“People had figured out the catchphrases and the language to somehow make this evil,” Miller said.

米勒說：「民眾找到某種程度讓這個東西變邪惡的口號和語言。」

Kallos, a Democrat who represents the Upper East Side, took a different position, saying the device’s presence in New York underscored what he called the “militarization of the police.” He said the robotic dogs resembled those featured in the 2017 “Metalhead” episode of the television show “Black Mirror.”

代表上東區的民主黨籍市議員卡洛斯採取不一樣的立場，他說這個裝置出現在紐約，突顯了他所稱的「警察軍隊化」。他說機器犬如同電視影集「黑鏡」2017年的其中一集「金屬頭」裡的主要角色。

“At a time where we should be having more beat cops on the street, building relationships with residents, they’re actually headed in another direction in trying to replace them with robots,” he said.

「此際我們理應在街上安排更多的巡邏員警，和居民建立關係，他們實際上卻反其道而行，試圖用機器取代警察。」