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> The easier our labor becomes, the more of it we can do, and the more of it we’ll be expected to do. I think it's a red herring to focus on the "quantity" of
by have_faith 3y ago
> The easier our labor becomes, the more of it we can do, and the more of it we’ll be expected to do.
I think it's a red herring to focus on the "quantity" of work. If I can push a button and a thousand things are produced, I am not inconvenienced as a worker to the point that I should feel slighted by my employer for expecting more than if that button only produced one thing at a time.
The output quantity possible per unit of time isn't the thing that stops employers overworking or abusing their employees, that's what the law is supposed to be for.
AI adds very little to the conversation of increased productivity not increasing leisure time of employees. No amount of increased productivity through technological gains is going to suddenly make this happen. We need to decide as a society that the physical and mental health of all citizens is more important than maximum economic output and enact laws that enforce these limits.
- fnordpiglet 3y agoThis. The issue isn’t about productivity. It’s about the constructed emergent reality we’ve constructed where the moral life is the life of toil, and that labor in any form is next to godliness. It doesn’t seem necessary that pushing a button all day for someone else’s benefit is more moral than building a realm in Minecraft all day, but our culture is replete with admonishments that time spent laboring is the only time well spent. People say it’s “the man” that encourages this out of their own avarice and greed, but my observation (partially by having been the man for some time now) is “the man” is a product of the system of beliefs, and is more subsumed by the delusion than most people. They certainly do encourage the belief in labor for labors sake - but more so because they do whole heartily believe in it themselves to the core of their being that they can’t see a functional society without everyone emulating the life they’ve led and that has rewarded them so heartily. There was a time up until about the 70’s that universal basic income and a dream of a post labor oriented society was vibrant and fairly mainstream, with even presidents advocating for it. It got lost, particularly (IMO) in the conservative backlash against social programs that equated “welfare,” racism, and a bunch of other touch points, to drive out the notion we can function without an overwhelming need to toil. We firmly tied health care and housing and any form of security to a life of unending toil. Retirement has been eaten away to ensure people toil long after they would have. As productivity improved, we demanded more toil. What our feckless leaders diverted away can be regained, and I hope that AI ushers in an era of human toil that’s so utterly pointless we finally can see the fnords en masse.
- glitchc 3y agoIn the history of humanity, we have observed, time and time again, the discord and misery sown by men of means with too much idle time on their hands. I agree with you that, in the absence of guidance, most people would waste their idle time on activities that bring them pleasure. But if only takes one, or a few, usually the intelligent ones, to find a flaw or chink in the system and exploit that flaw for their own personal gains, and the intelligent individual can maximize the scope and scale of the exploit. It's important to guide smart, intelligent people towards meaningful work for the betterment of society. There isn't much separating a clever scientist from a clever criminal, beyond ethics and discipline. To produce for the betterment of society is ultimately a moral goal. The notion that work is its own reward is not poisonous to society in and of itself, rather it's beneficial. When taken to excess, of course it is harmful as are most things taken to excess. But the complete absence thereof would be equally harmful to society.
- SkipperCat 3y agoI would hope that with tools like AI/LLM, we could spend the same amount of time working but building better things rather than more things. If tools like this allow us to be more productive, we could create richer, deeper and better products. Think about shoes. Tens of thousands of years ago, it was just some animal skin wrapped around your foot. Maybe a wooden sole if you're advanced enough. Now we have incredibly comfortable shoes that you can use to run a marathon. I know this is a simple analogy but I'm hopeful that more advanced tools allow us to have more advanced products and services, which benefits everyone.
- randcraw 3y ago> We need to decide as a society that the physical and mental health of all citizens is more important than maximum economic output and enact laws that enforce these limits. And how does AI fit into that equation? Will we regulate the use of all kinds of technology that doesn't clearly improve "all citizens' physical and mental health"? Surely the expiration date for that initiative passed eons ago... I can't think of a single example where the adoption of AI does not involve diminishing a cost, like a avoiding a threat to human health or life. What's the role of AI if not to increase reward to the owner of the 'bot?