The world is reverting back to slave labor

[ScubaGuy]

I guess what's need is a union that the computers and robots can join.

DUmmie Link

madville (1,690 posts)

The world is reverting back to slave labor
Throughout history many civilizations have used slaves for labor, to produce a product or provide a service basically. Over time labor has evolved in many parts of the world, wars were fought, laws passed, perspectives changed, etc. More people began producing products and providing services and in return received some type of compensation, either directly or through an employer.

I'm talking about a new kind of slavery, one that doesn't involve people. It's coming through technological advances and automation. Businesses exist to make profits and human labor is an expense that subtracts from profits, most businesses want to exist on the least amount of labor possible in order to produce their product or provide their service. It would be a corporation's dream to eliminate all human labor and they have people working on that very idea everyday.

Through automation and other technological advances businesses are developing a new type of slave workforce, one comprised of computers and machines. One that doesn't need rest, or lunch breaks, or overtime pay, or health insurance, or vacation/sick days, or maternity leave, or minimum wage, or etc. It's not hard to visualize a factory 50 years from now with no human workers out on the production floor, semi-trucks that drive themsleves, forklifts that load the trucks through their programming and sensors, no human input required. Instead of hundreds or thousands of production workers there would now just be a handful of managers, technicians and programmers.

I'm not ranting against technology, far from it, I think it is amazing. A negative impact of these advances however will be the need for less and less human labor. It's not just manufacturing either, imagine a fully automated fast food restaurant for instance with maybe one human manager, virtual banks with no physical locations, government services available online only like renewing your car registration, etc. Where will the balance be struck between human oversight and automated labor? We all know the profiteers will want as little human payroll as possible, it will be up to the people to elect politicians that can best serve the people.

I'm very interested to see how the workforce and society evolves. Maybe the governments will tax these automated businesses to a degree large enough to provide human citizens with a minimum standard of living. Maybe we'll all be wearing rags and scrounging through old landfills for bits of metal to sell to our new robot overlords I do believe one thing is certain, human labor will be a constantly endangered concept as society advances.

How could anyone make a living in that kind of word?  Will they have robots out to service the robots?

Of course a tax is always the solution and just wait for your wet dream of $15/hours fast food employees.  There already are companies with fast food automation systems.  Give the companies the financial incentive to start buying them and see what happens to your $15/hour.

[I_B_Perky]

I don't guess the dummy has figured out that it take humans to program, repair, run and maintain the robots/computers.  Computers are extremely well at repetitive tasks. Thinking? Not so much. 

[FlaGator]

I don't guess the dummy has figured out that it take humans to program, repair, run and maintain the robots/computers.  Computers are extremely well at repetitive tasks. Thinking? Not so much. 

That is changing. At some point down the road a computer or robot will need  only a basic set of instructions and will have the ability to expand on those as needed. They'll be able to create newer more optimized versions of themselves and repair and reprogram themselves. This isn't too far off in the future.

[thundley4]

That is changing. At some point down the road a computer or robot will need  only a basic set of instructions and will have the ability to expand on those as needed. They'll be able to create newer more optimized versions of themselves and repair and reprogram themselves. This isn't too far off in the future.

Skynet will become self aware.

[GOBUCKS]

I don't guess the dummy has figured out that it take humans to program, repair, run and maintain the robots/computers.  Computers are extremely well at repetitive tasks. Thinking? Not so much.

Where is there a democrat who has a job that requires thinking?

[I_B_Perky]

That is changing. At some point down the road a computer or robot will need  only a basic set of instructions and will have the ability to expand on those as needed. They'll be able to create newer more optimized versions of themselves and repair and reprogram themselves. This isn't too far off in the future.

I disagree. You can instruct a computer to do a lot of things... but a computer cannot dream and think. All it can do is crunch data and come up with likely solutions. Watson on jeopordy is a prime example. It took the question, scanned it's databases for likely answers, did it faster than the humans, and won. Take that database away and watson is just another fast computer. How did that database get put in? Why humans of course.

Computers cannot think and dream. Put a computer sans database, watson for example, put it out side and let it watch the clouds. Can it add to it's database and come up with and find something in a cloud that is has never seen before?  Nope. All it can do it store the cloud images it has observed.

The best computer is the human mind. Always has been, always will be.

[FlaGator]

I disagree. You can instruct a computer to do a lot of things... but a computer cannot dream and think. All it can do is crunch data and come up with likely solutions. Watson on jeopordy is a prime example. It took the question, scanned it's databases for likely answers, did it faster than the humans, and won. Take that database away and watson is just another fast computer. How did that database get put in? Why humans of course.

Computers cannot think and dream. Put a computer sans database, watson for example, put it out side and let it watch the clouds. Can it add to it's database and come up with and find something in a cloud that is has never seen before?  Nope. All it can do it store the cloud images it has observed.

The best computer is the human mind. Always has been, always will be.

I work in the field and some of the projects that are being developed are incredible. Take some time and study the Stuxnet virus that was unleased on Iran. The things it is capable of, without human intervention, is incredible. It is a prototype of things to come.

[thundley4]

I work in the field and some of the projects that are being developed are incredible. Take some time and study the Stuxnet virus that was unleased on Iran. The things it is capable of, without human intervention, is incredible. It is a prototype of things to come.

I've read where some of these viruses could lead to developing AI programs.

[SarasotaRepub]

That is changing. At some point down the road a computer or robot will need  only a basic set of instructions and will have the ability to expand on those as needed. They'll be able to create newer more optimized versions of themselves and repair and reprogram themselves. This isn't too far off in the future.

 

[FlaGator]

These new generation viruses have the potential to do great harm but the technology that is being developed is mind blowing. Imagine different viruses that are capable of communicating with each other, forming alliances and developing stratages for defeating security and the passing the successful methods to still more viruses. We're not there yet but the day is coming.

[SSG Snuggle Bunny]

Through automation and other technological advances businesses are developing a new type of slave workforce, one comprised of computers and machines. One that doesn't need rest, or lunch breaks, or overtime pay, or health insurance, or vacation/sick days, or maternity leave, or minimum wage, or etc. It's not hard to visualize a factory 50 years from now with no human workers out on the production floor, semi-trucks that drive themsleves, forklifts that load the trucks through their programming and sensors, no human input required. Instead of hundreds or thousands of production workers there would now just be a handful of managers, technicians and programmers.

A few weeks back TBF got into it with Nuclear Unicorn claiming machines would be humanity's liberators.

[Gina]

Speaking of labor, did the Steve guy ever raise money?

[txradioguy]

Well we can now add Luddite to all the negative things DUmmies are known for being.

[Big Dog]

Well we can now add Luddite to all the negative things DUmmies are known for being.

"Technology = slavery".

And they call themselves "progressives".

 

[DumbAss Tanker]

I don't guess the dummy has figured out that it take humans to program, repair, run and maintain the robots/computers.  Computers are extremely well at repetitive tasks. Thinking? Not so much. 

"Yet."

 

[MrsSmith]

Somehow, humans have survived all other technological advances...not too worried about future ones. Remembering my grandmother was born when horses were the main means of transportation and lived to see men on the moon, CT scanners, and goods from the Orient being CHEAPER than American made.   

[JohnnyReb]

Somehow, humans have survived all other technological advances...not too worried about future ones. Remembering my grandmother was born when horses were the main means of transportation and lived to see men on the moon, CT scanners, and goods from the Orient being CHEAPER than American made.   

That was a "great leap forward" and it wasn't done in a communist country.