Mornin Joe finally has a discussion of the real devil, "automation".

[CK_John]

Scary stats, preparing for 70% of jobless or part time employment.

Remember posting early in the year that the candidate who tackles this problem will win.

[MillennialDem]

1. Another reason for universal basic income. Some people are going to put out of jobs for years

while retraining for other jobs, if we even need jobs at all.

[CK_John]

3. I've been posting for a safty net of lowering SocSec to age 50yrs.

[MillennialDem]

10. It should be any age. Just an entitlement period.

[gollygee]

2. I think the problem is capitalism

Capitalism falls apart when you have robots and computer programs rather than people doing the grunt work. Although it doesn't really work that well even when it's people doing the grunt work. But capitalism depends upon having a group of underclass who are desperate to do grunt work for little money. When you don't need people at all, what happens in a capitalist society? Mass starvation and death?

We can't turn back technology, but we can change our economic system.

[CK_John]

4. Without a need for labor in any economic system people have

only 1 choice, WWIII.

[The2ndWheel]

8. Every economic system falls apart when you don't need people

Seeing as how people came up with economic systems with people sort of at the center of the ideas. Whatever we end up doing, it won't be perfect. Human beings will still be in the equation, so we'll still manage to mess things up.

Like if we have just a basic income for every person alive, which is probably the only way to do things, and machines doing all the difficult work, that will mean that the insatiable appetite of human beings will not be balanced out by effort it takes to get whatever it is that we want. That will amplify our environmental issues. Oil, coal, solar, wind, whatever energy you want to list, already does that. If we throw money at people for simply existing on top of that, and have machines that can work all day and night, we'll just create more of a mess.

There's no real alternative to that thought, other than letting people die, which of course wouldn't go smoothly. It'll be a fun century either way.

[My Good Babushka]

5. All monsters are human

Automation is an excuse. The economy only hurts people because some people want it that way.

[CK_John]

6. That is quite a word salad.

[My Good Babushka]

7. Legislators and civic leaders pretending that their hands are tied

because automation, or global trade, or "that's just the way it is" while poverty engulfs more and more people are the problem. And they keep it that way because they are the ones reaping the benefits of a lopsided, exploitative economy.

[CK_John]

9. Driverless cars/trucks, Navy destoryers with no crew, No Jobs means

no food.

We are in a new age, ignoring it will not make it go away.

[My Good Babushka]

11. I never suggested ignoring it

I would suggest we stop putting people in charge who think there is nothing that can be done about it.

[uponit7771]

12. Yeap, that and the deminision returns of the "angry white male" vote... it was pretty decent today