Comment by scandox

3 days ago

Surely only economists get excited by the revelation that consumers have to have money to buy things. I'd say domestic service is going to make a comeback. I do think I'd make an excellent man servant. Eke out my later years being ever so slightly superior to my employer without ever being openly insolent. Hang on...

I think domestic servitude is probably an understatement. We are looking at serfdom.

  • If this scenario comes to pass, then the class war in labor markets will have been won by capital. That would spell the end of the promise of non-violent resistance. What other leverage would ordinary people have if their labor is worthless?

    Blue collar work is somewhat insulated so long as humans are cheaper and less fickle than robots.

    We have seen in Gaza and to native americans what capital/power does to populations deemed surplus. It's not pretty. of course, that kind of violence happens once their land is desired, before that they are simply repressed.

    I think if the superintelligence hypothesis really does happen, we will need to have a rapid accommodation for the bulk of the population or things will get quite out of control.

    • I was at a restaurant last night with a group, and it was the first time I heard people actively organizing on how to block new data centers in the area. It felt like being in a scene in a sci-fi movie. I do think if these feedback loops happen too quickly of white collar displacement, there might be some real violence against data centers.

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