Subject: rather normal press release from our friends over at iRobot, whose home page famously offers the simply surreal choice: * Cleaning Robots * Tactical Robots

The PR runs thus:

iRobot Receives U.S. Military Orders

BURLINGTON, Mass., July 11, 2007: iRobot Corp. (NASDAQ: IRBT) today announced it has received two delivery orders totaling $17.5 million for iRobot PackBot robots for the U.S. military.

The U.S. Army Program Executive Office for Simulation, Training, and Instrumentation (PEO STRI), on behalf of the Robotic Systems Joint Project Office at Redstone Arsenal, Ala., and the Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) both placed orders for iRobot’s combat-proven military robots.

iRobot expects to complete delivery by the end of January 2008."

Then, in the delightful spirit of the afore-mentioned home-page incertitude, one imagines playful irony curl his lips, lighting his eyes with a deep and mischievous twinkle, as Vice Admiral Joe Dyer (U.S. Navy, Ret.), president of iRobot Government and Industrial Robots, announces:

We will continue our efforts to improve our battle-proven technologies with innovations like PackBot’s new game-style hand controller, which takes advantage of hours of training our young men and women have logged with computer games, making them pre-trained PackBot operators.

Ok, Joe. That’s reason enough for me to trot out this iconic 40 y/o classic cartoon comment by Ron Cobb (for which no excuse is too weak :0).

Hmm, another thunk. It strikes me, in cliche mind set, that cleaning robots target middle and upper class precincts, whilst tactical bots are surely the preferred choice for crime-ridden burbs.

Dang, did I say that out loud?