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IT is the cause of rising income and wealth inequality since the 1970s [pdf]

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Re: IT is the cause of rising income and wealth inequality since the 1970s [pdf]

#2
Infuriating!

An high-priest of the church of the economists does his job of exonerating politics from ugly social change, with "IT" as the sacrificial goat.

The obvious counterpunch "what about politics" gets this answer doubling down slimy-leech style:

(Quote)

A Final Note The IT revolution has brought about improvements in living standards and its great technical achievements enjoy a very high level of consumer and political support. However, these sources of social benefits are also the cause of social losses and rising inequality that threatens the foudation of our democrastic socieity. Th uniqueness of this study is that it focuses on the effect of technological change on efficiency and distribution and although we show modern developments in IT enabled higher barriers to entry, rising market concentration and increasing monopoly power of firms, we have avoided a policy evaluation. Yet, although these developments enjoy substantial public popularity it is only a matter of time before we shall need to debate the appropriate public policy to response to the social changes we face. To illustrate the need for some urgency consider the exmple of social networks. These are, in fact, privately owned public utilities. Subversive and terrorist groups have used the internet and social networks for coordinating their activities and these social networks have been a key tool for spreading rumors and conspiracy theories or, more generally, for proliferation of "fake news." These are national security problems and are challenges to the proper functioning of an informative press in a Democracy. The question we face is who should make the decisions on how to respond to these problems? Today it is entirely up to the private firms who own these channels to formulate good public policy decisions. This is not likely to remain a satisfactory solution. (End of quote) What about salaries and negotiation powers, financialisation and asset-prices inflation?

Re: IT is the cause of rising income and wealth inequality since the 1970s [pdf]

#3
industrial revolution, IT, next is AI (in all shapes, from self-driving to self-kidney-transplanting to self-QM and space-exploring) ... and that is the emotional foundation of that scene from the "AI". Though cyborg-ization of people may open other options. May be it will be natural that "all cyborgs are equal" as a result of being connected to the same global AI net, etc... Though most probably the cyborgization would be subject to heavy market segmentation too.

Also, it seems that the short period of lesser "income and wealth inequality" in US (all the other places were just poor, thus there was natural "equality") during around 195x was just a temporary aberration. Not that it wouldn't be good to repeat it, mind you.

Re: IT is the cause of rising income and wealth inequality since the 1970s [pdf]

#4
post #2

Infuriating! An high-priest of the church of the economists does his job of exonerating politics from ugly social change, with "IT" as the sacrificial goat. The obvious counterpunch "what about politics" gets this answer doubling down slimy-leech style: (Quote) A Final Note The IT revolution has brought about improvements in living standards and its great technical achievements enjoy a very high level of consumer and…

Would you please not post ideological rants to HN? Even if you're right, it lowers the quality of discussion below what we're hoping for here. Actually being right makes it worse.

Re: IT is the cause of rising income and wealth inequality since the 1970s [pdf]

#6
post #5

Serious question: if technology makes everyone better off but increases inequality, is that a bad outcome? Why or why not?

Some people will claim you can get both innovation and equality if you just throw in enough redistribution, but this is completely delusional.

Re: IT is the cause of rising income and wealth inequality since the 1970s [pdf]

#7
post #5

Serious question: if technology makes everyone better off but increases inequality, is that a bad outcome? Why or why not?

Increase in wealth inequality is not the only outcome. There's also the small issues of better resource management, like food per square acre, mpg, medical technology, etc. It's a complex subject insofar as it requires multi-discipline analysis. Is it reasonable that there be a stochastic "good/bad"? It's a good outcome for humanity, but has been tough to survive for the lowest IQ, least motivated, and least wealthy (relative to any given social locality) and tough to thrive/grow from the middle class. If you have a million dollars today, or had the equivalent in 1980, you could have lived off the interest and would have made money all the while till today.

Wealth inequality is often the basis for social revolution, so you have to be careful not to let it get too out of control for too long. In relation to dead cultures who went through this process, we've only just begun the initial stages of intolerance toward it. Occupy, bernie 2017, etc have largely been unsuccessful in motivating political or even social change. This was one outcome that was considered in the formation of the Union (an eventual defacto oligarchy) that was meant to be managed by the US political process. The conflict has already been escalated by flawed judgement in the judicial (citizens united).

Re: IT is the cause of rising income and wealth inequality since the 1970s [pdf]

#8
Noah Chomsky says technology is neutral: it can be used to empower companies, automate jobs away (as it's the case right now). It also could be used to empower employees (into super craftsmen??) but so far this direction isn't pursued.

Re: IT is the cause of rising income and wealth inequality since the 1970s [pdf]

#9
post #6
post #5

Serious question: if technology makes everyone better off but increases inequality, is that a bad outcome? Why or why not?

Some people will claim you can get both innovation and equality if you just throw in enough redistribution, but this is completely delusional.

[deleted]

Re: IT is the cause of rising income and wealth inequality since the 1970s [pdf]

#10
post #5

Serious question: if technology makes everyone better off but increases inequality, is that a bad outcome? Why or why not?

It could be bad if you find out that at some point, equality matters more than raw material wealth to the well-being of everyone.
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