Someone does still need to plant the food, harvest the food, pump the oil, cast the iron, smelt the aluminum, keep track of the shipping, etc. Life is hard
This is only true because capitalism is limiting technology to the point where all these mundane tasks can’t be automated or improved with tech so that it can be possible for all to self-maintain. Yes, not that simple and yeah someone would need to program things and maintain things, but there’s no way in hell I’m going to believe that humanity can waste so much time and money on something as unethical as AI but somehow can’t come up with technology to let people maintain crops without having every piece of the puzzle we have now.
They can do it. Everybody talks about how crazy it is about how in such a short time span we’ve gone from flying planes to landing on the moon and it is ridiculous. It’s not that inconceivable to believe that we can come up with tech to better maintain society beyond what we have now. People want to keep the status quo because they limit their minds to what has been.
Capitalism dictates that profit means everything. We don’t need pot holes to be filled every other year just because people get a job. People shouldn’t be dependent on such a system to survive. Pot holes can be filled with a solution that will not dissipate over time but capitalism doesn’t want that. It wants to make sure there’s a demand to pay someone despite the penalty of the many.
This is only true because capitalism is limiting technology
Capitalism is trying as hard as possible to replace people with machines, but there are a lot of jobs that machines simply can’t do.
to landing on the moon
Hundreds of millions of people paid the equivalent of thousands of dollars each for a dozen men to be able to walk on the moon. “Walking on the moon” isn’t some activity that anybody can do now. It was effectively a stunt to show that it could be done
do you believe that profit is not valued above all else in our current society?
Of course not. Just look at a typical commercial. You’re supposed to drink coke because it’s an activity you can do with friends. You’re supposed to buy a truck because it lets you get outdoors and go fishing. You’re supposed to buy makeup so that you can look glamorous for your friends and eligible men.
If profit were the most valued thing, these commercials would be all about how drinking coke makes you more focused so you can earn more money, and how your truck allows you to take on a side hustle to make more money.
The advertisers don’t give a shit about all that stuff, you’re supposed to buy things to make the company money. If there was no money to he gained, they wouldn’t sell and advertise it. They’re just trying to convince you you need product x for activity y
The advertisers don’t care. But, the people they’re advertising things to do care. For them, profit is not valued above all these other things, thus the advertisers need to target things they do care about: friends, family, status, leisure activities, etc.
Capitalism is trying as hard as possible to replace people with machines, but there are a lot of jobs that machines simply can’t do.
This is not absolutely true. I’ve seen and worked manual jobs that could absolutely be automated by a fairly simple machine. There isn’t much reason to automate low-paying jobs away.
There are also a lot of pointless “bullshit jobs.” ~20% of people think their own jobs are pointless.
I’ve been around the tech startup scene for a while now, and they often do a lot of pointless work that everyone knows isn’t useful, just because they know that’s what’s “hot” right now with investors.
There isn’t much reason to automate low-paying jobs away.
Ok, fair enough.
There are also a lot of pointless “bullshit jobs.” ~20% of people think their own jobs are pointless.
How many of them are right? Maybe some of them. But, a lot of people don’t appreciate the whole system they’re part of.
do a lot of pointless work that everyone knows isn’t useful, just because they know that’s what’s “hot” right now with investors.
I doubt it’s truly pointless. Sure, it might not end up working, but maybe the investor actually knows more than the workers. There are a lot of successful companies that I saw in their early stages and thought “nobody’s ever going to pay money for that”, and I was completely wrong.
This is only true because capitalism is limiting technology to the point where all these mundane tasks can’t be automated or improved with tech so that it can be possible for all to self-maintain. Yes, not that simple and yeah someone would need to program things and maintain things, but there’s no way in hell I’m going to believe that humanity can waste so much time and money on something as unethical as AI but somehow can’t come up with technology to let people maintain crops without having every piece of the puzzle we have now.
They can do it. Everybody talks about how crazy it is about how in such a short time span we’ve gone from flying planes to landing on the moon and it is ridiculous. It’s not that inconceivable to believe that we can come up with tech to better maintain society beyond what we have now. People want to keep the status quo because they limit their minds to what has been.
Capitalism dictates that profit means everything. We don’t need pot holes to be filled every other year just because people get a job. People shouldn’t be dependent on such a system to survive. Pot holes can be filled with a solution that will not dissipate over time but capitalism doesn’t want that. It wants to make sure there’s a demand to pay someone despite the penalty of the many.
Capitalism is trying as hard as possible to replace people with machines, but there are a lot of jobs that machines simply can’t do.
Hundreds of millions of people paid the equivalent of thousands of dollars each for a dozen men to be able to walk on the moon. “Walking on the moon” isn’t some activity that anybody can do now. It was effectively a stunt to show that it could be done
Only in the eyes of communists.
To your last point - do you believe that profit is not valued above all else in our current society?
I’d like to understand your view here further if you’re happy to elaborate
Of course not. Just look at a typical commercial. You’re supposed to drink coke because it’s an activity you can do with friends. You’re supposed to buy a truck because it lets you get outdoors and go fishing. You’re supposed to buy makeup so that you can look glamorous for your friends and eligible men.
If profit were the most valued thing, these commercials would be all about how drinking coke makes you more focused so you can earn more money, and how your truck allows you to take on a side hustle to make more money.
The advertisers don’t give a shit about all that stuff, you’re supposed to buy things to make the company money. If there was no money to he gained, they wouldn’t sell and advertise it. They’re just trying to convince you you need product x for activity y
The advertisers don’t care. But, the people they’re advertising things to do care. For them, profit is not valued above all these other things, thus the advertisers need to target things they do care about: friends, family, status, leisure activities, etc.
I agree with that. But the claim was that capitalism puts profit above all else, not necessarily that individual people do that.
Capitalism is people.
In a similar way to how feudalism is people?
This is not absolutely true. I’ve seen and worked manual jobs that could absolutely be automated by a fairly simple machine. There isn’t much reason to automate low-paying jobs away.
There are also a lot of pointless “bullshit jobs.” ~20% of people think their own jobs are pointless.
I’ve been around the tech startup scene for a while now, and they often do a lot of pointless work that everyone knows isn’t useful, just because they know that’s what’s “hot” right now with investors.
Ok, fair enough.
How many of them are right? Maybe some of them. But, a lot of people don’t appreciate the whole system they’re part of.
I doubt it’s truly pointless. Sure, it might not end up working, but maybe the investor actually knows more than the workers. There are a lot of successful companies that I saw in their early stages and thought “nobody’s ever going to pay money for that”, and I was completely wrong.