Interesting post - while I don't have any real answers I have to disagree with this point:

"Why do you think your computer is not conscious? It probably has more of a conscious experience than, say, a flatworm or sea urchin. (As byrnema notes, conscious does not necessarily imply self-aware here.)"

A computer is no more conscious than a rock rolling down a hill - we program it by putting sticks in the rocks way to guide to a different path. We have managed to make some impressive things using lots of rocks and sticks, but there is not a lot more to it than that in terms of consciousness.