Many people are offended by the computer metaphor. People are uncomfortable viewing themselves as machines.
Minsky's take on this situation is to view the word machine as being out of date. It carries with it connotations of trivial or simple mechanisms. "The term `machine' no longer takes us far enough." Modern machines are far more complex than those upon which the connotations of "machine" have been built.
Minsky wants to look at the brain, to see a *really* complex machine, and to get some self-respect in being likened to a machine. (NB: This can be related to the notion of Churchland and others that the brain represents the most complex device in the universe.)
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