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I wasn't very clear in my question or its context. What I meant was, people with average ability have been able to sustain themselves for thousands of years doi
by nfnaaron 17y ago
I wasn't very clear in my question or its context. What I meant was, people with average ability have been able to sustain themselves for thousands of years doing subsistence tasks. Until sometime in the 19th century, most Americans dug holes in the ground and dropped seeds in them, hung around, and then dug out the result later.
In the 20th century an American of average ability could sustain themselves doing office work or industrial labor.
Beginning sometime in the late 20th century, the average American seems (to me at least) to be less and less needed in the modern American economy. Jobs are automated or off-shored.
What do we as a society do about/with those "useless" people? It's a lot of people.
Or am I too pessimistic?
- intrepideng 17y agoWe could make them all read "Player Piano" by Kurt Vonnegut. :) That's the subject of the whole novel, and it's a really great one.
- allenbrunson 17y agobut sadly, kurt's answer in the book wasn't very satisfying. you could join the 'reeks and wrecks' and be miserable for the rest of your life, or revolt and be executed.
- yters 17y agoThe useless people at least are the ones who buy the products created by the useful people, and if the useless people don't have any money, they can't buy products, and the useful people become less useful. Of course, if the products are also exported, eventually the exploited people will figure out that they can cut out the "useful" middleman. Then we useful and useless Americans are all in the same boat.