[AndyTheBear]

Actually I think this is right in the short term. Over time though as with any improvement in industrial efficiency fewer people will be needed to do the same amount of work. This might mean fewer people in the industry but not necessarily--the industry might expand what is possible with new automation and deliver more to the customer and thus taking in more money as a whole and having more workers than it had before automation as a result...but they are not likely to be of the same skill set.

The part that concerns me is that automation tends to make things more sterile and the same. Less humanity going into what is crafted. Some people can afford to pay a high price for things that are hand crafted by those who keep the older more human arts alive--but most of us just make do with factory made things. What disturbs me is art and writing and journalism becoming sterile and plastic...more than it already has become. For myself I don't mind not having hand crafted furniture and such, but the idea of future generations not even hand crafted writing to read makes my heart sink.

[ProtectOurFreedom]

Ned Ludd and his followers were wrong 210 years ago. Steam driven advanced looms made clothing a lot more affordable for and everybody’s standard of living increased. That’s the paradox of automation and tech. It’s not pleasant being on the short end of the stick when the time comes, but people re-tool themselves to adapt. That’s the point of these warnings. Don’t get caught flat-footed on the factory floor by being the specialist left-handed veeble-nut tightener on the Kuhneutson valve.