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Automation has been eliminating jobs since the 1960s, which is why Richard Nixon was ready to propose a form of universal income in 1969. He backed out because

• kccqzy 4y ago
  I thought at that time the main reason the nation backed out of the universal income was not racism, but a statistical error: > Even former Nixon advisor Daniel Moynihan stopped believing in basic income, following a fatal discovery upon publication of the final results of the Seattle experiment. One finding in particular grabbed everybody’s attention: The number of divorces had jumped more than 50%. Interest in this statistic quickly overshadowed all the other outcomes, such as better school performance and improvements in health. > Ten years later, a reanalysis of the data revealed that a statistical error had been made; in reality, there had been no change in the divorce rate at all. From https://thecorrespondent.com/4503/the-bizarre-tale-of-president-nixon-and-his-basic-income-bill/173117835-c34d6145 https://thecorrespondent.com/4503/the-bizarre-tale-of-presid...
• sexy_panda 4y ago
  If we can automate away further jobs, we will need a UBI in some form. We pretend to be able to keep up with technological progress and most people do. Unfortunately not everyone has access to good schooling or the mental / physical capability. If enough low to mid level jobs are automated away without securing people from getting lost in society, we could be facing anti-technological groups rising. It seems like science fiction now, but will it? Politics need to grow with our capabilities.