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American truck drivers could lose their jobs to robots

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Re: American truck drivers could lose their jobs to robots

#21

Post by papapra »

tuna-piano wrote: post #6

The other question you need to ask in order to understand this future scenerio:. Shipping costs will significantly decrease, what will consumers and shareholders spend the extra money on? Who knows what they will spend the extra money on, could be healthcare, boats, TVs, whatever. But new jobs will be created in these expanded industries. It really, really bothers me the constant "x technology will drive x people out…

I think what you are missing is the fact that this time the changes will take place much faster. With farming, the changes were slower and generational.(The children of farmers didn't do farming). And still these changes had colossal impact on societies(and a lot of blood was spilled).

Re: American truck drivers could lose their jobs to robots

#22

Post by k__ »

mertd wrote: post #13
k__ wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> UBI > sitting around choose one

Can you explain why those are contradictory? Surely some people will opt to not have a job at all, if they didn't need to worry about maintaining a minimum quality of life and that's not necessarily a bad thing.

there are more than enough things to do that help society, which aren't done at the moment, because no one pays for them.

Re: American truck drivers could lose their jobs to robots

#23

Post by merpnderp »

tuna-piano wrote: post #6

The other question you need to ask in order to understand this future scenerio:. Shipping costs will significantly decrease, what will consumers and shareholders spend the extra money on? Who knows what they will spend the extra money on, could be healthcare, boats, TVs, whatever. But new jobs will be created in these expanded industries. It really, really bothers me the constant "x technology will drive x people out…

Shockingly enough, a UBI has been a libertarian concept for nearly half a century. If UBI had some reasonable limitations, like say 10% of the GDP divided evenly amoungst those who apply, it would provide a hard bottom to poverty while leaving huge incentives to find gainful employment.

I'm not saying it wouldn't quickly turn into 51% of the people voting themselves 100% of the money (which would quickly become worth nothing), but it isn't the worst idea out there.

Re: American truck drivers could lose their jobs to robots

#24

Post by JBReefer »

k__ wrote: post #10
tuna-piano wrote: post #6

The other question you need to ask in order to understand this future scenerio:. Shipping costs will significantly decrease, what will consumers and shareholders spend the extra money on? Who knows what they will spend the extra money on, could be healthcare, boats, TVs, whatever. But new jobs will be created in these expanded industries. It really, really bothers me the constant "x technology will drive x people out…

> UBI > sitting around choose one

Why not? That's what I would have done in my early twenties.

Re: American truck drivers could lose their jobs to robots

#25

Post by mavhc »

ardit33 wrote: post #20
beyondcompute wrote: post #16

Yeah, I've been thinking lately as well, why are we doing that? I mean as a society? (I recall a phrase said by someone, that we are consciously building a future nobody wants to live in.) What exactly are we getting from that? Ultra-rich, namely car companies owners and shareholders, will become even more rich. (Why are they doing it, by the way, don't they have enough super-cars, mansions, yachts already?) What am…

I am pretty sure Luddites had very similar arguments back in the 19th century. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luddite If you look back at it, they were on the wrong side of history/argument. Automation is going to keep going, no matter what, and it is mostly a good thing. Yes, we might have few years of uneasy adjustment times, but things will sort themselves out on the long run. Think of it, one modern excavator is m…

Viewed from another perspective the Luddites were self employed, worked from home, and set their own hours. They didn't want to work 8 to 8 in a dangerous factory for a rich guy.

Re: American truck drivers could lose their jobs to robots

#26

Post by merpnderp »

k__ wrote: post #22
mertd wrote: post #13

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Can you explain why those are contradictory? Surely some people will opt to not have a job at all, if they didn't need to worry about maintaining a minimum quality of life and that's not necessarily a bad thing.

there are more than enough things to do that help society, which aren't done at the moment, because no one pays for them.

I often see a lady riding her RoundABout scooter, on disability, picking up trash on the side of the road. She's incredibly nice and good hearted, and hates sitting around doing nothing. But the reason I stopped to talk to her was that it is unbelievably unusual for someone who is obviously on disability to be out doing something for the common good.

And unless you have some hard data showing people on public assistance use their free time doing the unsung dirty work society needs, I don't believe it will magically start happening if we change the name of welfare to UBI.

Re: American truck drivers could lose their jobs to robots

#27

Post by beyondcompute »

kbenson wrote: post #18
beyondcompute wrote: post #16

Yeah, I've been thinking lately as well, why are we doing that? I mean as a society? (I recall a phrase said by someone, that we are consciously building a future nobody wants to live in.) What exactly are we getting from that? Ultra-rich, namely car companies owners and shareholders, will become even more rich. (Why are they doing it, by the way, don't they have enough super-cars, mansions, yachts already?) What am…

In what way is this different than the industrial revolution? Are we, as a world, wallowing in relatively more people starving and in poverty than ever before? Why is this different?

Well, I still believe that world became better than it was: https://www.ted.com/talks/larry_brilliant_makes_the_case_for...

And, of course, it all is just a food for thought, doesn't necessarily mean we need to prohibit sales of self-driving vehicles (except for special technical applications).

But still we have to understand that it's our conscious effort, not just the "natural force of Progress". As a society we should intervene and regulate things, and make that decision to steer the economic trends in ways harmonious with society's needs. As a related thought, I think, Jaron Lanier puts it nicely: https://youtu.be/XdEuII9cv-U?t=11m37s

Re: American truck drivers could lose their jobs to robots

#28

Post by steve19 »

papapra wrote: post #21
tuna-piano wrote: post #6

The other question you need to ask in order to understand this future scenerio:. Shipping costs will significantly decrease, what will consumers and shareholders spend the extra money on? Who knows what they will spend the extra money on, could be healthcare, boats, TVs, whatever. But new jobs will be created in these expanded industries. It really, really bothers me the constant "x technology will drive x people out…

I think what you are missing is the fact that this time the changes will take place much faster. With farming, the changes were slower and generational.(The children of farmers didn't do farming). And still these changes had colossal impact on societies(and a lot of blood was spilled).

Humans have a tendency to always think "it's different this time".

Trucking won't disappear overnight.

Re: American truck drivers could lose their jobs to robots

#29

Post by WillPostForFood »

beyondcompute wrote: post #16

Yeah, I've been thinking lately as well, why are we doing that? I mean as a society? (I recall a phrase said by someone, that we are consciously building a future nobody wants to live in.) What exactly are we getting from that? Ultra-rich, namely car companies owners and shareholders, will become even more rich. (Why are they doing it, by the way, don't they have enough super-cars, mansions, yachts already?) What am…

7% cheaper, repeated over and over is meaningful. 1n 1900, people had to spend 43% of their income on food, now it is 13%. They spent 12% of their income on clothing, now it is 4%. Basic goods getting cheaper particularly helps poorer people.

http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2012/04/how-amer...

Re: American truck drivers could lose their jobs to robots

#30

Post by JBReefer »

beyondcompute wrote: post #16

Yeah, I've been thinking lately as well, why are we doing that? I mean as a society? (I recall a phrase said by someone, that we are consciously building a future nobody wants to live in.) What exactly are we getting from that? Ultra-rich, namely car companies owners and shareholders, will become even more rich. (Why are they doing it, by the way, don't they have enough super-cars, mansions, yachts already?) What am…

Goods becoming 7% cheaper means everyone on Earth is 7% wealthier. You might be happy with current prices, but very poor people definitely aren't.
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