Looks Like News Follows Ithaka on Robot Jobnappers

Every so often there's a fervent Ithaka reminder about the Age of Robots and a whole lot of jobs are going to evaporate.  The reaction generally, is calm down, Crazy Silas, and whatever medication you neglected to take, um, do take that now.  (Ithaka:  The Robots Are Coming, The Robots Are Coming)

That article was a couple of days ago and today we have a warning about the loss of a million jobs to robots in England by 2030.  (RT: Robots could put more than 1mn Brits out of work by 2030 – study)

Well, gee, who could have seen that coming, huh?


In that study, there was one cheerful note, however.

Although the figures appear to herald a future blighted with mass unemployment, Deloitte claims automation has created more work than it has destroyed over the past 140 years.

- RT

Here at the Rockhouse, we see blanket generalizations of that nature as less than useful since automation has applied at generally high levels with factories still requiring workers to run them and complex switchboards replaced by a simple Chatty Cathy computer front-end but backed by call centers staffed by humans.  In this round the people in the call centers will be eliminated and the same is true in factories where attendance by humans will become progressively more superfluous and redundant.

In general, if you're not making robots in the Brave New World it appears you will be, technically speaking, fucked.  This is why there has been solid emphasis on the sociology of the new world since there will be far fewer human jobs in it.

Insofar as there's tremendous resistance to changing anything, even among those who say they want change, the probability of anything being addressed in any sort of positive manner (i.e. anything which is not driven by a crisis) appears to be low.  Fear-motivated thinking never goes to any positive end and the election provides abundant evidence of that but we need to get past to the dispassionate thought which comes from reason rather than adrenaline.

This is where the richies cringe and they start loading their guns but they will still stay rich even if not as rich as they are now.  However, there is immense benefit to creating a stable economy due to documented benefits in reduced social dysfunction, etc.  That comes with a cost but so does anything else.  Even if that's as far as anyone thinks, it should still be enough if only from a functional standpoint.  The problem isn't the ability to pay for it but rather the rigidity of thought (i.e. fear) which prevents changing anything.

Fear causes one of two reactions:  you either become a Republican and lock down all changes or you shave your head and go to airports to start doing Hare Krishna dances in saffron robes.  Mostly the WTF Democrats have chosen the latter and they're dancing around and chanting while hoping Hillary Clinton becomes the Virgin Mary.  Republicans just laugh as they watch.

Die Kaninchen are much too hip for that and do look to the future as in beyond the next meal.  As you can easily see from social networks, looking past the next meal already makes you exceptional.

(Ed:  you seriously need to stay out of those social networks, mate.  Studying the species isn't supposed to be self-destructive.)

This I know and I must remind myself, do not engage, do not engage (larfs).

No question the rich will pay more but they're richer than the Vatican now (maybe) and they will remain so after the fact albeit with their hoards somewhat reduced but still vastly more than they could ever spend or need.  The purpose is toward a society which works which you sure as hell will not have with hordes of people out of work.  There's not likely anything else which leads faster to social unrest so just a wee bit of planning seems in this drug-addled freak's mind to be worthy of consideration.

The Rockhouse focus is entirely toward a glowing future which may come although indifference can easily subvert it.  The belief is information overcomes indifference but it needs to be disseminated in some way separate and quite apart from mainstream blasts of non-information or it will only be lost in the cacophony.

(Ed:  you gots the faith?)

Sure I gots the faith, my brothers and sisters.

We can do tremendous things but we can't fiddle about and we need to get cracking on it because the last time to prepare for something is at the time we need it.  This is a simple thing to see, right?

(Ed:  hallelujah!)

Hallelujah!  (larfs)