There were people in the 50s/60s who though that by 2000 we'd be working 30 hour work weeks and retiring by 45. The dream was that automation would help us work

There were people in the 50s/60s who though that by 2000 we'd be working 30 hour work weeks and retiring by 45. The dream was that automation would help us work less and live more. Today work is tied to our identity in many countries. "What do you do?" is a question asking about career. If you don't work, you must be lazy. The solution isn't more jobs to make more things to keep us in the production cycle. Things should last longer. Cellphones should last six years, not two. When Intel posts a loss, it should be taken as a sign they produced chips so well that replacements aren't necessary. This gets into a much much bigger problem of money, value, debt, consumerism and planned obsolescence. Ultimately if humanity is to survive another 10,000 years, we're going to need some pretty big paradigm shifts.