3 ms·

> They could fix our crumbling infrastructure... reduce overcrowding by making prisons larger Unskilled people make crappy engineers and construction workers.

by vacri 11y ago

> They could fix our crumbling infrastructure... reduce overcrowding by making prisons larger Unskilled people make crappy engineers and construction workers. > provide child care These days, child care workers need a lot of paperwork and a bit of training. Not to mention that you kind've have to be good with kids; it's not really a job just anyone can do. > in-home care for our elderly And this is in the same bucket. Forcing people into a caring role makes for bad carers. > build community gardens This one could work... but then again, how many gardens can you have, and how many folks would they support the work for? Throw in also that all of these things are not 'free labour'. You still need to manage and train that staff, and you're going to have higher overhead costs because you'll have higher turnover. It's not as simple as just saying "labour = free, so go do something".

ptaipale 11y ago
> build community gardens This one could work... but then again, how many gardens can you have When I hear this, I immediately think of Great Cultural Revolution in China, and Pol Pot in Cambodia. Also there the joys of gardening and agricultural work were supposed to cleanse the bourgeois people. And while we are there, let's shoot anyone with eyeglasses for trying to be too intellectual.
yummyfajitas 11y ago
Unskilled people make crappy engineers and construction workers. We did this and it worked. I believe some elements of training were provided. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Civilian_Conservation_Corps https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Civilian_Conservation_Corps But suppose you are right - there are no unemployed people out there capable of fixing our crumbling infrastructure. Suppose we were to just throw money at the problem via ordinary government spending. How would the work actually get done, i.e. who would do it? Forcing people into a caring role makes for bad carers. No one is forced into anything. You do work and you get money, same as any other job. In any case, the folks who make bad carers can do other things, e.g. pick up trash in the park or work as janitors in government buildings.

by vacri 11y ago

ptaipale 11y ago

> build community gardens This one could work... but then again, how many gardens can you have When I hear this, I immediately think of Great Cultural Revolution in China, and Pol Pot in Cambodia. Also there the joys of gardening and agricultural work were supposed to cleanse the bourgeois people. And while we are there, let's shoot anyone with eyeglasses for trying to be too intellectual.

yummyfajitas 11y ago

Unskilled people make crappy engineers and construction workers. We did this and it worked. I believe some elements of training were provided. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Civilian_Conservation_Corps https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Civilian_Conservation_Corps But suppose you are right - there are no unemployed people out there capable of fixing our crumbling infrastructure. Suppose we were to just throw money at the problem via ordinary government spending. How would the work actually get done, i.e. who would do it? Forcing people into a caring role makes for bad carers. No one is forced into anything. You do work and you get money, same as any other job. In any case, the folks who make bad carers can do other things, e.g. pick up trash in the park or work as janitors in government buildings.