< German Robot (formerly also Robat , Robate ; early 14th cent. in Middle High German as robāt ) < a West Slavonic language, compare Old Czech robota forced labour, hard work (Czech robota forced labour, drudgery), Old Polish robota work, forced labour (Polish robota work), cognate with Old Russian rabota , robota work, forced labour (Russian rabota work), Old Church Slavonic rabota , robota slavery (Bulgarian rabota work) < the Slavonic base of Old Church Slavonic rabŭ , robŭ , Old Russian rab′′ , rob′′ , slave, servant (Russian rab slave), Old Czech rob descendant, heir (Czech rob slave) ( < the same Indo-European base as arveth adj. and perhaps erf n.1) + a suffix forming nouns. 

Whoever decided a toaster 
should have sapience
is the same person 
who decided that child labor
is fundamentally 
wrong.

In both cases 
they were right.