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You think that what, the benevolent trillionaires will give money to the unemployed out of the goodness of their hearts?

astrange 4y ago
It’s not possible to have “trillionaires” if the economy is so small it has unemployed people in it. That’s literally the plot of Atlas Shrugged, not real life.
- adamsmith143 4y ago
  ? We're on the verge creating the first trillionaire in the next few decades with our current economy which, gasp, has millions of unemployed people in it.
soup10 4y ago
That's more a discussion of wealth distribution, systems of government and the flaws of capitalism. Theoretically speaking if you free human labor through the use of machines you're creating wealth because the same or greater output can be achieved with less resources and those resources can be allocated elsewhere. Of course some people believe that machines will replace all jobs eventually but historically that has not been the case. Generally new technology makes some jobs obsolete but humans adapt and find different ways to contribute to society.
Ajedi32 4y ago
We've already replaced 99% of the workforce once. Now instead of subsistence farming, people can live, eat basically any kind of food they want, own a multi-room house, and fly around the world once or twice a year on a vacation, all in exchange for less labor than that same person would have needed to expend to simply not starve a few thousand years ago. Is that because billionaires "give [you] money out of the goodness of their hearts"? Are you unemployed because all those farming jobs have been eliminated? Obviously not. Rather, the efficiency gains of modern infrastructure have simply made your labor that much more valuable.
- hnfong 4y ago
  Ironically, you're literally describing the 1% lifestyle. (That includes me, but I'm aware that most people don't get to enjoy the great lifestyle you mention.)

astrange 4y ago

It’s not possible to have “trillionaires” if the economy is so small it has unemployed people in it. That’s literally the plot of Atlas Shrugged, not real life.

adamsmith143 4y ago
? We're on the verge creating the first trillionaire in the next few decades with our current economy which, gasp, has millions of unemployed people in it.

soup10 4y ago

That's more a discussion of wealth distribution, systems of government and the flaws of capitalism. Theoretically speaking if you free human labor through the use of machines you're creating wealth because the same or greater output can be achieved with less resources and those resources can be allocated elsewhere. Of course some people believe that machines will replace all jobs eventually but historically that has not been the case. Generally new technology makes some jobs obsolete but humans adapt and find different ways to contribute to society.

Ajedi32 4y ago

We've already replaced 99% of the workforce once. Now instead of subsistence farming, people can live, eat basically any kind of food they want, own a multi-room house, and fly around the world once or twice a year on a vacation, all in exchange for less labor than that same person would have needed to expend to simply not starve a few thousand years ago. Is that because billionaires "give [you] money out of the goodness of their hearts"? Are you unemployed because all those farming jobs have been eliminated? Obviously not. Rather, the efficiency gains of modern infrastructure have simply made your labor that much more valuable.

hnfong 4y ago
Ironically, you're literally describing the 1% lifestyle. (That includes me, but I'm aware that most people don't get to enjoy the great lifestyle you mention.)