5 ms·

I've seen sci-fi depictions of over-industrialized mega-city scapes, but I never thought I'd actually get to see a picture of one. To call that surreal is an u

I've seen sci-fi depictions of over-industrialized mega-city scapes, but I never thought I'd actually get to see a picture of one. To call that surreal is an understatement.

nabla9 13y ago
sci-fi? It's more like reminder from the history. Rapid industrialization and increase in living standards seems to follow familiar pattern. Great Smog of London documentary https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vkx-2mT1-q4 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vkx-2mT1-q4
aspensmonster 13y ago
I guess we didn't have to wait until November 2019. But at least we have "cheap" consumer goods!
- icebraining 13y ago
  And Chinese workers have stuff like food. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poverty_in_China#Poverty_reduction http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poverty_in_China#Poverty_reduct...
  - Houshalter 13y ago
    We could just give people food without having to make stuff for us in return. The world does not have a food shortage.
    - Symmetry 13y ago
      Meanwhile, in the political system we live in, most Americans think that a balanced budget should be achieved by cutting foreign aid. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/04/09/americans-want-to-balance_n_531671.html http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/04/09/americans-want-to-b... "Market exchange is a pathetically inadequate substitute for love, but it scales better."
    - sliverstorm 13y ago
      That fosters dependence issues.
      - dreamfactory 13y ago
        What does that even mean? Who is dependent on what in that scenario?
        sliverstorm 13y ago
        The people receiving food stop working to secure food on their own. They grow entitled, and expect food aid. It's an observed phenomenon in Africa.
        dreamfactory 13y ago
        Wasn't that the whole idea - for them to stop producing and polluting the planet? That giving them food would be cheaper. Of course it would threaten our dependence on cheap clothes and expensive gadgets.
        sliverstorm 13y ago
        It's not a socially stable option. Not because we want cheap gadgets, but because of the social imbalance. Also from an ethical point of view, it's not very fair to deny them the chance to become a developed nation.
        dreamfactory 13y ago
        People don't sit around on their bums for too long - it's just not in our nature. If they weren't slaving away in factories they might end up as a society that primarily produces cultural capital (huge social stability there) or they might develop a service-based economy. In the wider scheme, Chinese manufacturing is probably more important to the west than China.
        13y ago

I've seen sci-fi depictions of over-industrialized mega-city scapes, but I never thought I'd actually get to see a picture of one. To call that surreal is an understatement.

nabla9 13y ago

sci-fi? It's more like reminder from the history. Rapid industrialization and increase in living standards seems to follow familiar pattern. Great Smog of London documentary https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vkx-2mT1-q4 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vkx-2mT1-q4

aspensmonster 13y ago

I guess we didn't have to wait until November 2019. But at least we have "cheap" consumer goods!

icebraining 13y ago
And Chinese workers have stuff like food. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poverty_in_China#Poverty_reduction http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poverty_in_China#Poverty_reduct...
- Houshalter 13y ago
  We could just give people food without having to make stuff for us in return. The world does not have a food shortage.
  - Symmetry 13y ago
    Meanwhile, in the political system we live in, most Americans think that a balanced budget should be achieved by cutting foreign aid. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/04/09/americans-want-to-balance_n_531671.html http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/04/09/americans-want-to-b... "Market exchange is a pathetically inadequate substitute for love, but it scales better."
  - sliverstorm 13y ago
    That fosters dependence issues.
    - dreamfactory 13y ago
      What does that even mean? Who is dependent on what in that scenario?
      - sliverstorm 13y ago
        The people receiving food stop working to secure food on their own. They grow entitled, and expect food aid. It's an observed phenomenon in Africa.
        dreamfactory 13y ago
        Wasn't that the whole idea - for them to stop producing and polluting the planet? That giving them food would be cheaper. Of course it would threaten our dependence on cheap clothes and expensive gadgets.
        sliverstorm 13y ago
        It's not a socially stable option. Not because we want cheap gadgets, but because of the social imbalance. Also from an ethical point of view, it's not very fair to deny them the chance to become a developed nation.
        dreamfactory 13y ago
        People don't sit around on their bums for too long - it's just not in our nature. If they weren't slaving away in factories they might end up as a society that primarily produces cultural capital (huge social stability there) or they might develop a service-based economy. In the wider scheme, Chinese manufacturing is probably more important to the west than China.
        13y ago