Thursday, March 28, 2024
 
Tech Revolution Causing Long-term Worry For Some Smart People; Most Readers Not Concerned

WASHINGTON, D.C. Jan 28 (DPI) – The technology revolution is scaring the crap out of people, even – and perhaps especially – some very smart people, according to what’s coming out of meetings at the recent World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

Nobel Prize-winning economist Robert Shiller told CNBC that the presence of ultra-low – and even negative – interest rates reflects an almost unprecedented level of fear and worry  among investors, policymakers and others controlling the flow of global assets. Shiller told CNBC:

 “There’s this increasing fear of technology, information technology, artificial intelligence, robotics, 3-D printers, the internet and all these different forms. Technology seems to be changing life in such a fundamental way and what it’s leaving people thinking is ‘where will I be in 30 years? Look how fast everything is changing now. Where will my children be? I want to leave something for them because they could be in terrible straits’.”

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/everyone-scared-nobel-prize-winner-093614163.html

And Shiller apparently isn’t alone in his pessimism. Tech entrepreneur Elon Musk recently donated $10 million to a venture researching how to control and contain artificial intelligence, which he and others fear could wreak havoc on modern society.

Fears of anarchy and social unrest are rising too. Venture capitalists attending the Davos meetings whispered to one another about their “Plan B”s – like fleeing New York City for New Zealand to escape social unrest.

More than 300 reader comments attached to the Yahoo News article, as expected, varied in position and tone.  But most pushed back – often intelligently – against the notion that the technology revolution wasn’t manageable, for both people and societies around the globe.

There is indeed an Industrial Revolution going on and increasing workers in present jobs will be redundant. Not too many decades ago most Americans were in the rural, agricultural economy. Then many worked in factories. Only a small percentage are in agriculture now and only a few will be in factories shortly. Usually when a door closes another opens. But where it might be is not clear yet.

Bond yields are preposterously low due to central bank manipulation (Quantitative Easing) and economic softness, not “fear”.

There will be Millions of jobs lost to automation & technology. However, if we cut full time work to 25 hors a week, we could put twice as many people to work while expanding operating hous from 40 hours to 50 hours per week. Via two shifts. This may mean that companies can’t maximize their profits. However, if we end up living in a society with 50% unemployment, companies will find ird to make any profits what so ever.

TIME TO THINK OUTSIDE THE BOX PEOPLE. We are the wealthiest nation on the planet, there is nothig we can’t accomplish together as ONE people.

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