We're on the precipice of social upheaval

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As a society, we’re approaching a point where automation will put a significant portion of people (not just Americans) out of work. Here in America, nobody in government is addressing the fundamental problem with widespread unemployment despite repeated warnings from scientists and technology experts. The most recent efforts by Trump to bring coal jobs highlight the the ineptitude of politicians to recognize the core problem.

What are your thoughts? How does this play into your business decisions?

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I see two outcomes:

  1. Basic income to make a Star Trek utopia
    or
  2. Killer robots round up and destroy the lower classes to prevent revolution

If someone is useless to society you’ve got two choices: support them or kill them, basically.

Here’s a fun read on one of the outcomes:

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Scary as hell if we don’t figure out how to care for our fellow brothers and sisters. With approx 50% of the workforce being excess to requirements that is going to be a huge hit - so unless the wealthy and elite start sharing their largesse from the capitalist system then I think the poor working schleps will end up in a pretty horrible situation - which will only lead to massive social unrest and revolution.

Or killer robots. Or a GMO plague. That would be the most convenient solution.

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I have a friend I debate with about it. I think we’ll get the basic income utopia and he thinks we’ll get the killer robots. If he is right then he won’t get to lord it over me since we’ll be dead, so I guess it’s my version of Pascal’s wager to pick the optimistic outcome.

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I place no reliance on any .Gov supporting me in any sort of a utopia. Without massive social change - our current political systems won’t go towards any sort of basic income utopia.

I am a follower of the permaculture path - I think societal and environmental collapse is coming - we can prepare ourselves and our communities - start with the grass roots and then maybe if we can survive the transition without some idiot releasing the killer robots or the ecosystem going into a hyper-collapse - maybe we can survive - humanity is resilient - but we have hammered our mother earth so hard in a quest for material wealth - it will take time to recover - and that time may be one of great hardship… Especially if we also have to fight off killer robots!

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Yeah that’s another possibility. With your own power source (solar or mini-nuclear reactor), a 3D printer/CNC machine, a robot or two, and enough space and energy to grow your own food, we could get people being self-sufficient. We might need to help people get there though, with the 21st century equivalent of 40 acres and a mule.

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We need to change our societal and cultural interactions - we need to reconnect with our tribes and neighbours. To get through it will take strong and connected communities. If we want utopia. We have to build it ourselves.

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It might not need to be killer robots. It could be civil war that solves the “population problem.” As the famous phrase goes:

“There are only nine meals between mankind and anarchy” - Alfred Henry Lewis

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The average american town or city has at most a 3 day supply of food… If the trains and trucks stop running. Hope you have a nice stash of beans and bullets.