The Software Revolution

An anonymous reader writes: Y Combinator president Sam Altman writes about how the third great technological revolution — which he calls the software revolution — is affecting the world economy. He says, "It appears that the software revolution will do what technology usually does—create wealth but destroy jobs. Of course, we will probably find new things to do to satisfy limitless human demand. But we should stop pretending that the software revolution, by itself, is going to be good for median wages.

Trying to hold on to worthless jobs is a terrible but popular idea. Trying to find new jobs for billions of people is a good idea but obviously very hard because whatever the new jobs are, they will probably be so fundamentally different from anything that exists today that meaningful planning is almost impossible. ... The second major challenge of the software revolution is the concentration of power in small groups. ... I think the best strategy is to try to legislate sensible safeguards but work very hard to make sure the edge we get from technology on the good side is stronger than the edge that bad actors get."

Comments

Re:Service Sector

[epyT-R]

Probably.. The revolt the socialists have been hoping for. They've already got the 'intelligentsia' lined up on their side (the bloodless pincer) by thoroughly compromising the education system. They'd love it if the lower class would upend the whole thing with violence (the bloody pincer). What better way to upend a once functional society then by setting it against itself, polarizing as much as possible, conflicts between white vs non white, men vs women, straight vs gay, rich vs poor etc. Joe citizen majority in the middle will look at both and run for the hills, abandoning the country. It will be a sad day. I hope I don't live to see it.

The protracted soviet social engineering continues, even with the death of its mother country.

Re:Service Sector

[epyT-R]

If you go back and read the propaganda distributed by socialists and communists over the years, the patterns leap out. They justify doing this in the name of 'revolution.' Many of them reference the 'two prong' attack as well.

So when the middle class wealth generators realize they can't keep what they've earned and slowly die out, what will motivate the next generation to work their hardest? Why study to become an engineer if you'll be paid the same as a factory laborer in the name of 'social justice'? Where does the future wealth come from? Or are we all supposed to live in love and harmony in a happy unicorn-powered utopia? The soviet union, cuba, and north korea have shown that this repression of individual interest degenerates into state enforced mediocrity where everyone is poor equally, except for the party elite. Places like sweden and denmark suffer a softer fate, where the culture has become so self loathing that it lets anything cross the border unchallenged in the name of 'diversity.' Taxes are high and so is alcoholism. If these two are examples of 'moderate' socialism, I don't see much functional difference.

Capitalism is not the 'temporary use of another class's capital.' It is a system where property is freely bought and sold. 'Borrowing' against the taxpayer's capital is exactly what the socialist solution does for every budget shortfall they hit in their attempts at centralization. They borrow against the taxpayer's future income (with the federal reserve) while increasing their tax burden, burning the individual's capital from both ends. It's criminal.