General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Paul Krugman rediscovers Marxism--what's next? Fire? The wheel? [View all]Spike89
(1,569 posts)I certainly don't know what people will do for a living in 100 years (hell, in 40 years). I am just as certain that it won't be working in classic factories for the most part. In just the last 40 years we've seen the number of cars produced explode, while at the same time the number of people required on the lines has drastically fallen off. Many goods are produced in virtual "black box" factories where raw materials are automatically fed in and finished goods roll out with very little human labor required. We are well into Vonnegut's Player Piano scenario. We left the farms in the 1800s, we'll leave the factories in the 2100s.
Of course some people still farm, and some people will always be in manufacturing. What we value and pay each other for will change. How painful and disruptive that shift away from the factories is will be determined by our society and government response. Pretending it isn't going to happen will only make the process worse.