>>However in a "post-scarcity" environment >>> Scarcity of which commodity? Scarcity of materials and energy, mostly. >>> The western civilization is already

>>However in a "post-scarcity" environment >>> Scarcity of which commodity? Scarcity of materials and energy, mostly. >>> The western civilization is already at a point where food and clothes aren't even a problem. Yet the debates about rich and poor are common. You are correct that the segment of the population that does not need to worry about food and shelter is much higher than before, but we're not there yet: the "west" is generously about 15% of the world's population. Unfortunately, discussions of possible futures tend to be rooted in current thinking and assumptions (mostly by necessity); by our current thinking, yes, people would get "free food, clothes and a home" but imagine if those things were as available as the air we breath. We neither talk about "free air" nor argue about its unequal distribution. In fact, we complain when our air is polluted.