[rvieira]

Particularly ironic using the defence of "it’s not the technology that’s to blame, but the person, not the machine gun, but the person".

Machine guns, an advanced piece of engineering widely known to being developed purely as an academic exercise. No one could expect other uses.

[wnkrshm]

The argument is slightly different here though: The OP is blaming the person who invented the machine gun in the analogy.

[rvense]

Which is obviously reasonable! If you know how to build weapons, don't. Let somebody else do it.

[Buffout]

Scientist have moral responsibility not to build weapons of mass destruction for example. Too bad even Einstein couldn't keep with your advice. Scientists are sometimes not so smart. They can be fooled like anybody else.

[wnkrshm]

We're not talking about accidentally inventing a machine gun, we're talking about being cautioned about inventing a machine gun and not caring:

"Hey you're inventing a machine gun!" "No I'm not, and even if I was, machine guns can be used for many things other than violence!"

Edit: Also, Einstein in this analogy is the one cautioning about someone being able to invent a machine gun.