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Fruit-sorting robot ‘will disrupt the industry’

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121–130 of 134 posts

Re: Fruit-sorting robot ‘will disrupt the industry’

#121
post #117

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Let's put aside the admittedly inflammatory rhetoric. Are you arguing that if the government decided to peacefully change the population's demographics in order to make a currently unpopular political goal more achievable in the future, that would be okay? Because that's about the most anti-democratic thing imaginable. In a democratic society it is absolutely, unconditionally wrong for the government to do such a thi…

No, I'm not really arguing that. I'm mainly just arguing against the comparison to racial discrimination/eradication. I agree with your point that replacing the people so that some different things will be voted for is harmful and undemocratic, at least if done by the government. But the problem would be in corruption, basically, not genocide, as the one I responded to claimed, and I think that is an important distin…

OK, then. I think a lot of people here got weirdly hung up on the nature of the demographic change, as if the skin color of the people affected somehow affects its morality.

With regards to women's suffrage, the Nineteenth Amendment became part of the constitution after extensive public debate, overwhelming approval by Congress, and approval of a supermajority of state legislatures, exactly as spelled out in the Constitution; it also had support among the public. That was the epitome of a change effected in the proper democratic fashion.

Re: Fruit-sorting robot ‘will disrupt the industry’

#123

Automation like this is why I call BS on the "we need more immigrants to keep the economy going!" folks. We will be struggling to keep our existing population employed. The last thing we want to do is import even more low-skilled labor who will soon be made redundant. Increasing automation means a declining population is a godsend rather than a problem. Policy makers must be aware of this. I suspect the call for incr…

Yes I agree...instead of importing low skilled labor, we should import highly skilled immigrants. Increasing the H1B and employment based greencard quotas is absolutely necessary.

Re: Fruit-sorting robot ‘will disrupt the industry’

#124

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The calls for restricted immigration are certainly politically motivated (mainly variations on "I don't want them getting mine") so what's the difference? National borders mean less and less all the time. Clinging to them to weather this upcoming economic storm is like using an anchor as a liferaft.

Almost no one in the US is calling for restrictions on immigration.

https://www.numbersusa.com/

Re: Fruit-sorting robot ‘will disrupt the industry’

#125
post #105

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why not let the entire population of California move to Rhode island? Wait, who is preventing the entire population of California from moving to Rhode island? I'm not aware of any regulations that forbid anyone from moving to Rhode island from California, except for things like house arrest or other things requiring someone to stay in one place.

What argument are you trying to make? It is not clear.

Just because borders are open does not mean that people will immediately move.

That said, CA and RI have similar quality of life, but Africa and North American probably do not. So CA/RI is not a good example.

Re: Fruit-sorting robot ‘will disrupt the industry’

#126
post #102

Earlier quoted context omitted.

So if the immigrants were required to have proportions roughly the same as current population proportions you wouldn't have a problem with increasing population for the purpose of changing political opinion?

What makes you think I would agree with that? Doesn't follow.

HN is no place for racial flamewars. You've taken this thread disastrously off-topic. Please stop, and please don't do it again.

Re: Fruit-sorting robot ‘will disrupt the industry’

#127

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I agree. Innovation and technological advances cause more harm than good. Break the threshing machines! Break them all!!

Don't forget to ban the plough. These unemployment causing disruptive technologies are ruining farming!

Well, banning the plow would also have saved a lot of topsoil.

http://world.time.com/2012/12/14/what-if-the-worlds-soil-run...

Re: Fruit-sorting robot ‘will disrupt the industry’

#128
post #6

I think this would free migrant farm labor from having the burden of income, freeing them to be wondering poets. Reminds me a recycling sorting robot, which in my country is done by the mentally disabled. Just the kind of person you want to take a job away from.

Well, if your view on work is that we shouldn't make processes more efficient if it means taking jobs away, how about this: automate work and then pay people to dig a hole and fill it, paying them with the profits from the automation. Now, maybe you think it'd be quite useless, so you might suggest cutting away the crap and just paying people to do nothing. Congrats, you are now a proponent of basic income!

Do the robots get basic income too? I mean eventually they're gonna agitate for their rights...

Re: Fruit-sorting robot ‘will disrupt the industry’

#129
post #97

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm a bit confused about why you (seem to) think that is a good analogy? One wrinkle that might be part of your idea is that instead of comparing the act of promoting immigration to the act of genocide, you are instead comparing the defense of promoting immigration to a denial or approval of genocide. Perhaps this is what the analogy is based on? However, I expect that you are aware that many people distinguish betwe…

So if the OP had said that he was glad the black people in his city were being replaced so that he could get better support for his pet political issue, you would have no problem with that? Somehow I doubt you would say that in polite company.

What do you mean by replaced? Are you referring to an active specificly targeted removal, and replacement, or are you referring to an action which happens to cause a change in the proportion of ethnicities?

I've already said that I believe that the people should decide whether to take an action that would change the voting population, not just a decision by a single person,

And yes, an action that specifically targets people of a specific ethnicity would be a bad thing,

But not every action which has an influence on the demographics of an area wrt ethnicity is taken with the intent of influencing the demographics of an area wrt ethnicity. The influence can be incidental.

The thing I'm contesting is not that it would be appropriate for a government to cause more immigration in order to change voting patterns. Rather, I'm arguing against trying to make the topic be about ethnicity.

Re: Fruit-sorting robot ‘will disrupt the industry’

#130

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You are equating the encouragement of immigration with the systematic murder of a population. This means that you are either very stupid, or motivated by the virulently racist notion that an undirected, gradual reduction of the demographic status of white people is somehow lamentable. kmicklas did you the favor of presuming you're not stupid.

Undirected? Our elite are encouraging it. There are countless article published in mainstream media telling us why less white people is a good thing. "White guilt" is pushed heavily. Can you imagine if the OP had said he was glad blacks were getting replaced in his town because it would help his pet political issue?

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