US Midterm Election Megathread II: The Stretch Run Begins

[Corrian]

Honestly in the short term? Not entirely sure. There will definitely need to be cheaper (Or free) access to college so we could have, for the ones that can handle it, a highly educated society which would honestly just evolve things even faster if you ask me. Long term I would say the very concept of money would begin to go out the window as automation takes over every aspect of our job market.

I am fully aware that none of this will probably go that way, but hey.

In which case just saying "nah" to any plans to try and prevent it from happening is a mind boggling position to take.

But I want my full freedom to travel and hike whenever I want

[Valrifell]

Honestly in the short term? Not entirely sure. There will definitely need to be cheaper (Or free) access to college so we could have, for the ones that can handle it, a highly educated society which would honestly just evolve things even faster if you ask me. Long term I would say the very concept of money would begin to go out the window as automation takes over every aspect of our job market.

I am fully aware that none of this will probably go that way, but hey.

In which case just saying "nah" to any plans to try and prevent it from happening is a mind boggling position to take.

You can't really prevent it. It's the classic capitalist mindset, if you do this thing you'll get an edge over competitors if you don't you fall behind. If the US doesn't do it, someone will. We'll all still be victims to machine-replacement, except we'll also be on the back foot and won't get to lead the global government to fully automated luxury gay space communism.

[Washington Resistance Army]

In which case just saying "nah" to any plans to try and prevent it from happening is a mind boggling position to take.

You can't really prevent it. It's the classic capitalist mindset, if you do this thing you'll get an edge over competitors if you don't you fall behind. If the US doesn't do it, someone will. We'll all still be victims to machine-replacement, except we'll also be on the back foot and won't get to lead the global government to fully automated luxury gay space communism.

So we nuke anyone who tries, ez pz

[Cannot think of a name]

In which case just saying "nah" to any plans to try and prevent it from happening is a mind boggling position to take.

But I want my full freedom to travel and hike whenever I want

We're already long past the point where everyone actually has to do something to sustain society. We're literally making shit up for people to do in order for them to justify their existence because we're stuck in a system where everyone pitches in to keep the tribe alive. We've been scaling that system up, but we're going to reach a point where it's evident that we'll need a new way to handle things. We're artificially creating scarcity in some cases just to keep that system going. Automation might move us past the tipping point where we have to change the system. It really depends on how hard people cling to the idea of things having to be the way they are.

[Tobleste]

It would be quite the upset.

Would be fitting if someone who threw his lot in with Donnie ended up getting shafted.

Especially given the unique level of cowardice that Cruz showed in throwing his lot in with trump after he took those shots at his wife.

[Ifreann]

That's how it works now. What makes you think that the guy who owns the machines will continue to own the machines?

Because the guy owns the machines will have a lot of money and will hire Blackwater to kill you if you try and take them.

Then guess we'll have to kill Blackwater, or whatever they're calling themselves by that point. Good thing we'll be able to print AKs.

He'll also be able to throw around stupid amounts of money in politics and we all know how great that is at preventing things from happening.

Again, it is now. But what will it matter that Rich Guy could donate a mountain of money to your campaign when people can follow in the footsteps of Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and run a successful campaign on small donations? Even Trump, whose highest virtue in his own consideration is his wealth, is showing that spreading a message can be as cheap as a Twitter account. Mass communication technology is prevalent and affordable and only becoming more so. Elections aren't always going to cost mad bank to run, and the more people who get elected on the cheap, the more the electorate will lose patience with candidates who are taking those corporate bribes. And then what are those corporate bribes worth? Less than the briefcases they're delivered in.

I could posit instead a society where automation is sufficiently advanced that there has ceased to be any need for humans to labour at any task at all, and that in this society it does not make sense for people's access to goods and services to depend on what tasks they labour at. I could point out that this would have to lead to a pseudo-communist society where the means of production are collectively owned, but where there are no longer workers. I could tell you that in such a society, we would all have unlimited free time to pursue whatever interest took our fancy.

You'd also be stuck in abject poverty because you have no money to pay for anything because your boss decided it was cheaper to fire you and replace you with a machine and we still happen to live in a consumerist capitalist society.

Indeed I might, until I died. I'd be quite surprised if the world changed overnight.

The government doesn't have enough money to pay for everyone

Money isn't actually a necessary resource to do anything.Money, to quote a writer of utopian sci fi, is a sign of poverty.

and just praying and hoping for a utopia to crop up is pretty much tantamount to just saying we should commit national suicide because it's the same as saying we should just do nothing.

I am but a humble dumb-dumb. I imagine my primary contribution to the inevitable socialist revolution, if I were involved at all, would be staying out of the way. So I can't say I'm very moved by complaints that I'm just praying and hoping for utopia to crop up. The fuck else am I gonna do?

Lots of people are going to start losing jobs over the next few decades (nearly 40% are at high risk according to CNN over the next 15 years) while CEO's and stockholders keep getting more and more rich at their expense and frankly I don't see you as one of the violent "murder them and their families and seize the wealth!" types so I'm struggling to see how large scale automation would in any way be a beneficial thing to the common man.

Automation allows us to meet our material needs and desires without human labour. Logically, ever more advanced automation will eventually allow us to meet all our material needs and desires without any human labour. And when nobody needs to labour, how can we possibly continue to have capitalism as it exists today? I think that ultimately good things will come from this. I don't know what exactly you think, except that I'm wrong.

Like really, do you think that 40% (which will almost certainly keep growing as the technology keeps getting better) will just magically be taken care of and be able to just sit around and make art or some shit all day?

Magically? No. Technologically.

What's your plan and how are you going to pay for it? UBI isn't going to work and the chances of the unemployed just somehow getting all the machines is pretty damn silly to throw around without a serious real world plan to back it up. Pretty much the only way automation ends is with the rich getting richer at everyone elses expense unless we kill it soon.

What's your plan to kill it? And keep in mind that you've been telling me that our corporate overlords can control not only the government, but their own private armies. What are you going to do to thwart these corporate interests that the united workers of the world cannot do towards their own, socialist ends? Are you going to overthrow the capitalists, seize the means of production, and then give them back to the capitalists as long as they promise not to invent robots again?

---

Well, the future is coming if you like it or not.

That future doesn’t have to be 60% unemployment

The future could be 100% unemployment if we had enough automation.

[Thermodolia]

That future doesn’t have to be 60% unemployment

Well, it probably will be.

Doesn’t have to be. We can Nationalize the companies that do it, break up companies like Amazon, arrests those like Musk, and Fine the rest out of their minds

[Thermodolia]

You can't really prevent it. It's the classic capitalist mindset, if you do this thing you'll get an edge over competitors if you don't you fall behind. If the US doesn't do it, someone will. We'll all still be victims to machine-replacement, except we'll also be on the back foot and won't get to lead the global government to fully automated luxury gay space communism.

So we nuke anyone who tries, ez pz

The majority will be too involved with internal strife to do anything. 60% of a nations population isn’t anything to sneeze at.

[Corrian]

Well, it probably will be.

Doesn’t have to be. We can Nationalize the companies that do it, break up companies like Amazon, arrests those like Musk, and Fine the rest out of their minds

How about no.

[Freezic Vast]

Well, it probably will be.

Doesn’t have to be. We can Nationalize the companies that do it, break up companies like Amazon, arrests those like Musk, and Fine the rest out of their minds

And you wonder why we call you a communist.

[Cannot think of a name]

Well, it probably will be.

Doesn’t have to be. We can Nationalize the companies that do it, break up companies like Amazon, arrests those like Musk, and Fine the rest out of their minds

Musk is into the idea of universal basic income.

[Valrifell]

Doesn’t have to be. We can Nationalize the companies that do it, break up companies like Amazon, arrests those like Musk, and Fine the rest out of their minds

Musk is into the idea of universal basic income.

Musk says one thing and smashes the Unions of his employees like any other businessman. Hard to say what his end goals are, other than "build a Martian colony and get really fucking rich"

[Thermodolia]

Doesn’t have to be. We can Nationalize the companies that do it, break up companies like Amazon, arrests those like Musk, and Fine the rest out of their minds

And you wonder why we call you a communist.

I’ve never wondered that. Even though I’m a NatSyn and not a communist but ya.

[Thermodolia]

Doesn’t have to be. We can Nationalize the companies that do it, break up companies like Amazon, arrests those like Musk, and Fine the rest out of their minds

Musk is into the idea of universal basic income.

That doesn’t make me like him more. That makes me want him gone sooner rather than later

[Washington Resistance Army]

Doesn’t have to be. We can Nationalize the companies that do it, break up companies like Amazon, arrests those like Musk, and Fine the rest out of their minds

Musk is into the idea of universal basic income.

UBI is a joke that just by looking at the numbers won't work.

[Ifreann]

Well, it probably will be.

Doesn’t have to be. We can Nationalize the companies that do it, break up companies like Amazon, arrests those like Musk, and Fine the rest out of their minds

Musk will fund rival candidates and keep you out of office. He'll pay off other politicians to block your legislation. He'll hire Blackwater to go to your house and kill you.

[Thermodolia]

Doesn’t have to be. We can Nationalize the companies that do it, break up companies like Amazon, arrests those like Musk, and Fine the rest out of their minds

How about no.

You can remain unemployed if you want too. But the rest of the workers shouldn’t be forced out of their jobs because some rich assholes want cheap robot labor

[Freezic Vast]

And you wonder why we call you a communist.

I’ve never wondered that. Even though I’m a NatSyn and not a communist but ya.

>Calls for nationalization of private companies and arrest venture capitalists
>Identifies as a NatSyndicate

What's the difference?

[Valrifell]

How about no.

You can remain unemployed if you want too. But the rest of the workers shouldn’t be forced out of their jobs because some rich assholes want cheap robot labor

60% global unemployment is unsustainable, the masses will rise and then suddenly Marx is popular again.

[Washington Resistance Army]

Doesn’t have to be. We can Nationalize the companies that do it, break up companies like Amazon, arrests those like Musk, and Fine the rest out of their minds

Musk will fund rival candidates and keep you out of office. He'll pay off other politicians to block your legislation. He'll hire Blackwater to go to your house and kill you.

This is why we do away with democracy entirely and give him no choice to fund rival candidates.

[Thermodolia]

Doesn’t have to be. We can Nationalize the companies that do it, break up companies like Amazon, arrests those like Musk, and Fine the rest out of their minds

Musk will fund rival candidates and keep you out of office. He'll pay off other politicians to block your legislation. He'll hire Blackwater to go to your house and kill you.

Is all you do shitpost and move goalposts?

And who said I was running for office? 1917 Russia here we come

[Thermodolia]

I’ve never wondered that. Even though I’m a NatSyn and not a communist but ya.

>Calls for nationalization of private companies and arrest venture capitalists
>Identifies as a NatSyndicate

What's the difference?

A lot. Actually. Particularly as communists tend to favor top down government controlled economies while Syndicalists want the workers to aline in worker syndicates

[Northern Davincia]

In which case just saying "nah" to any plans to try and prevent it from happening is a mind boggling position to take.

But I want my full freedom to travel and hike whenever I want

Provided it's outside the brightly painted picket fence around my property, sure.

[Ifreann]

How about no.

You can remain unemployed if you want too. But the rest of the workers shouldn’t be forced out of their jobs because some rich assholes want cheap robot labor

The workers shouldn't be forced to spend their whole lives working when we could have robots do all the work and free up the workers to live better than the most decadent capitalist ever did.

[Corrian]

How about no.

You can remain unemployed if you want too. But the rest of the workers shouldn’t be forced out of their jobs because some rich assholes want cheap robot labor

I guarantee there is a large chunk of people perfectly fine with the idea of being free to do whatever they want without worry of work.

Hell, if this world became a reality, I would probably do MORE with my life than I do now. It'd be amazing.