Today Barnes and Noble Announced the closing of hundreds of stores.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/01/28/barnes--noble-to-close-stores_n_2566386.html

Why? Internet Advancement. IT is making the Postal Service obsolete. Record number of retail salespeople are forever furloughed. Why? IT advancement with online selling.

Paralegals? Going down the shitter. Computers are being programmed to do their work. Accountants? Just a matter of time. Turbo tax popularity and eventual tech savvy software improvements will put the HR Block people out of work.

Check out line personnel? Computers do your jobs just as well, without the human error. Travel agents? Find a new job. And this list hardly scratches the surface.

People cried doom and gloom whenever robots were put into the workforce. Robots work 24/7, never call in sick, and don't embarrass the company by doing stupid shit. But that only affected the blue collars, so who cares, right?

Computer advancement will never stop. Computer advancement taskes away the jobs from people who use their brain to make a living.

So what happens in 30 years or so when computer software completely dominates capitalism?

Footwedge;1376458 wrote:Today Barnes and Noble Announced the closing of hundreds of stores.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/01/28/barnes--noble-to-close-stores_n_2566386.html

Why? Internet Advancement. IT is making the Postal Service obsolete. Record number of retail salespeople are forever furloughed. Why? IT advancement with online selling.

Paralegals? Going down the ****ter. Computers are being programmed to do their work. Accountants? Just a matter of time. Turbo tax popularity and eventual tech savvy software improvements will put the HR Block people out of work.

Check out line personnel? Computers do your jobs just as well, without the human error. Travel agents? Find a new job. And this list hardly scratches the surface.

People cried doom and gloom whenever robots were put into the workforce. Robots work 24/7, never call in sick, and don't embarrass the company by doing stupid ****. But that only affected the blue collars, so who cares, right?

Computer advancement will never stop. Computer advancement taskes away the jobs from people who use their brain to make a living.

So what happens in 30 years or so when computer software completely dominates capitalism?

[video=youtube;4DQsG3TKQ0I][/video]

No. It will merely change what capitalism looks like, should it actually exist somewhere.

Ideally it would mean that we would have to work less to enjoy the same standard of living. Technological advancements and increased productivity make us all wealthier. Unfortunately, the government makes us all poorer, so who knows how the two will balance each other out. As hard as they have tried to impoverish us over the last 100 years, technological innovations have still managed to increase our standard of living.

Footwedge;1376458 wrote:So what happens in 30 years or so when computer software completely dominates capitalism?

Since the advent of commerce in any form, it has existed in a state of evolution. Technological advancements are an age of that evolutionary process.

I'm not sure what makes it all that different. I wouldn't doubt that this discussion has come up before the robot discussion, even. Yet, here we are, and people are still making money and employing others.

O-Trap;1376468 wrote:No. It will merely change what capitalism looks like, should it actually exist somewhere.

OK...fair enough. What will it look like?

My guess would be that about 50% of people will be IT geeks in order to remain employed. Which will further enhance the exponential growth and further enhance the macro economics conundrum. I think Buck has it right. The tech advancements should allow for Americans to work less hours and yet enjoy the benefits from these IT measures of improvements. But the reality is...that will not be the case.

O-Trap;1376473 wrote:Since the advent of commerce in any form, it has existed in a state of evolution. Technological advancements are an age of that evolutionary process.

I'm not sure what makes it all that different. I wouldn't doubt that this discussion has come up before the robot discussion, even. Yet, here we are, and people are still making money and employing others.

Evolution...yes...as in industrial revolution and so on. The computer age is vastly different. It is unprecedented. No way you can compare what happened in the past to this present wave.

Creative destruction.

Footwedge;1376483 wrote:OK...fair enough. What will it look like?

My guess would be that about 50% of people will be IT geeks in order to remain employed. Which will further enhance the exponential growth and further enhance the macro economics conundrum. I think Buck has it right. The tech advancements should allow for Americans to work less hours and yet enjoy the benefits from these IT measures of improvements. But the reality is...that will not be the case.

What we call "IT geeks" today will probably be considered commonplace, yes. However, if we were talking to someone in the 1960s, they'd probably say you and I are "IT geeks" for owning a computer, being able to use a search engine and the Internet in general, being able to install the ink in a personal printer we own, having a smart phone, etc. The problem with using terms like "IT geek" is that it, like many others, has a moving definition.

And you are correct. It will not allow a more leisurely lifestyle. It will simply create an environment in which more productivity is expected. Again, that has happened all throughout. The printer and/or photocopier was the same way.

Footwedge;1376486 wrote:Evolution...yes...as in industrial revolution and so on. The computer age is vastly different. It is unprecedented. No way you can compare what happened in the past to this present wave.

I'm open to hearing this statement out. In what way would you suggest that it is unprecedented? Is it not, at its base, another attempt to allow for increased productivity for the private sector? In what way is it that different?

I work in IT. Yay for me I guess.

WebFire;1376521 wrote:I work in IT. Yay for me I guess.

Increased competition for you.

I don't think it will destroy capitalism but I think you're going to be see a more classical marxian class struggle between labor/displaced workers and the owners of capital/robots.

For a long time there's been a large divergence between the wages of highly skilled labor and unskilled labor. As robots begin to take over more work, that struggle be replaced by the struggle between the owners of the robots and the former workers.

On the other hand, there will be all kinds of new work that we will do that we cannot even imagine right now.

Wired had a pretty cool story on this topic recently.

http://www.wired.com/about/2012/11/wired-january-cover/

O-Trap;1376529 wrote:Increased competition for you.

I got a head start.

WebFire;1376539 wrote:I got a head start.

True. Just hope you're not the kind to rest on your laurels.

O-Trap;1376541 wrote:True. Just hope you're not the kind to rest on your laurels.

You really can't in IT.

The equation has not changed: find a skill that's valued and profit. If you and your skills are not evolving you're being left behind.

If the robot took your job putting a screw in a door, then it's time you learn a new skill maintaining those robots.

gut;1376560 wrote:The equation has not changed: find a skill that's valued and profit. If you and your skills are not evolving you're being left behind.

If the robot took your job putting a screw in a door, then it's time you learn a new skill maintaining those robots.

To a large degree, I agree. Keep swimming upstream or die.

Footwedge;1376458 wrote:Accountants? Just a matter of time. Turbo tax popularity and eventual tech savvy software improvements will put the HR Block people out of work.

Accounting is probably one of the safest professions IMO. Entry level accountants may suffer a little, but there will always be plenty of accountants.

Terry_Tate;1376565 wrote:Accounting is probably one of the safest professions IMO. Entry level accountants may suffer a little, but there will always be plenty of accountants.

Recession proof

Terry_Tate;1376565 wrote:Accounting is probably one of the safest professions IMO. Entry level accountants may suffer a little, but there will always be plenty of accountants.

Because very few actually want to do it. Accounting is so boring.

Footwedge;1376458 wrote:People cried doom and gloom whenever robots were put into the workforce. Robots work 24/7, never call in sick, and don't embarrass the company by doing stupid ****. But that only affected the blue collars, so who cares, right?

Computer advancement will never stop. Computer advancement taskes away the jobs from people who use their brain to make a living.

So what happens in 30 years or so when computer software completely dominates capitalism?

Do you still own a buggy whip ?