In 1998, 48% of respondents in one survey said they never used the internet. Just a few years later, weekly use was growing more normal. Now, it’s everywhere, all the time.
I think there is no possible world where people are without meaningful work and are happy about it. Even if they collected $10,000 a month and got to spend all of their time doing hobbies and spending time with family, it would feel pointless and hollow. Why have a family? Why raise children? Why do anything if there’s no struggle, if you’re not the one providing for your kids? I think if AI replaces humans in the workplace, even with UBI, humans would cease to exist shortly thereafter as our lives will have become meaningless
Get some annoying trust fund kid, take all their money away from them, and tell them that they now have to get a job but it’s a good thing because now their life has meaning. Let’s see how happy they are about it.
I don’t know how you’ve managed it but you’ve managed to invent toxic-domestication, The idea that someone’s life can’t be worth living unless they are working. I don’t know maybe you’re young but when you get to your 40s you begin to realise that actually what you really want out of life is just to be left alone, you really aren’t craving notoriety. If you can just sit in the hobby room and build airfix models or whatever then go to the pub, for the next 40 years you’d be happy.
I really don’t know why you’re arguing about this because there have been actual experiments where people have been given UBI and pretty much everyone ends up just going and doing their own stuff. I’ve never heard of anyone complaining about being given free money.
I was paraphrasing and trying to be nice. Fine, you didn’t say humans yearn for the workplace. You said humans existentially require the workplace.
I think if AI replaces humans in the workplace, even with UBI, humans would cease to exist shortly thereafter as our lives will have become meaningless
Define “being useless”. It certainly seems that “being useless”, to you, it is either “not working” or “not creating monetary value”, which would be super ironic given that there are many jobs around the world that make the person feel useless or worse
I’d say that anyone that feels the need to define themselves “by their role” has no clue on who they are or can be, needing the rest of society to direct them
I think there is no possible world where people are without meaningful work and are happy about it.
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Even if they collected $10,000 a month and got to spend all of their time doing hobbies and spending time with family, it would feel pointless and hollow.
What is the difference between “hobby” and “work” if not what random people decide what is better monetised?
Both is labour & value added.
In a world where everyone gets enough money people could do what they actually want. So a CEO wouldn’t be “stuck” being a CEO if they don’t like that job & would rather be eg a baker. In the current system bcs of a huge pay divergence you get an unhappy CEO (who ofc won’t quit) and an unhappy baker that just couldn’t get a more suited paying job.
But we as a society would get a lot more out of life & cultural progression if people would be happy & satisfied at what they do (job=hobby).
Empirical evidence (even USA did extensive tests in the 60s) show that given a universal income (so basically no scarcity) basically nobody just sits around watching TV all day, everyone is productive (research, art, services, etc).
Imagine only having customer support or food industry workers that truly enjoy their job & want to do it.
How many prodigies are stuck at random dead end jobs with no prospects and life options?
Labour is what we all benefit from.
Work is what the employer/owner benefits from.
I think people would find new ways to struggle that they actually enjoy and would likely end up contributing. Imagine a couple of thousand people with their new modest but stress free budgets decide to join a yearly potato cannon contest, Sure its not going to invent anything new directly but you now have a bunch of people learning about ballistics and stoichiometry and high pressure engineering all egging eachother on to shoot that potato further. The competition gets more and more fierce and with the much lower stakes people start trying some more out there ideas, before you know it you have a modest but highly effective solution to reliably obtaining the correct gas mixture for something like a combined light gas gun.
And that’s a deliberately silly example, you’d get a ton more art, people deciding to be athletes, coders, all sorts of hobies that can encourage healthy competition and often benefit society in surprising ways.
I think there is no possible world where people are without meaningful work and are happy about it. Even if they collected $10,000 a month and got to spend all of their time doing hobbies and spending time with family, it would feel pointless and hollow. Why have a family? Why raise children? Why do anything if there’s no struggle, if you’re not the one providing for your kids? I think if AI replaces humans in the workplace, even with UBI, humans would cease to exist shortly thereafter as our lives will have become meaningless
Okay let’s do an experiment.
Get some annoying trust fund kid, take all their money away from them, and tell them that they now have to get a job but it’s a good thing because now their life has meaning. Let’s see how happy they are about it.
How about you give them a wife and kids to take care of at the same time. Life would feel pretty pointless if I was only working to support myself
I don’t know how you’ve managed it but you’ve managed to invent toxic-domestication, The idea that someone’s life can’t be worth living unless they are working. I don’t know maybe you’re young but when you get to your 40s you begin to realise that actually what you really want out of life is just to be left alone, you really aren’t craving notoriety. If you can just sit in the hobby room and build airfix models or whatever then go to the pub, for the next 40 years you’d be happy.
I really don’t know why you’re arguing about this because there have been actual experiments where people have been given UBI and pretty much everyone ends up just going and doing their own stuff. I’ve never heard of anyone complaining about being given free money.
You serious?
Yes, I think people define themselves by their roles, especially men
You have a very limited view of what life should, or even can be.
It’s not a normative statement. I don’t necessarily think it’s good. I just don’t think people can be happy being useless
You said people yearn for “the workplace”
No I didn’t
I was paraphrasing and trying to be nice. Fine, you didn’t say humans yearn for the workplace. You said humans existentially require the workplace.
Define “being useless”. It certainly seems that “being useless”, to you, it is either “not working” or “not creating monetary value”, which would be super ironic given that there are many jobs around the world that make the person feel useless or worse
I’d say that anyone that feels the need to define themselves “by their role” has no clue on who they are or can be, needing the rest of society to direct them
Everyone defines themselves by their role. If you’re only living for yourself, not helping anyone or doing anything for anyone else, why live?
That’s a sign of toxic culture, not of men wanting to be defined by what value they can bring.
*monetary value
(in relation to toxic culture)
(bcs value that people actuality bring to society often isn’t fairly valued in terms of money or even not at all)
No it’s biology
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What is the difference between “hobby” and “work” if not what random people decide what is better monetised?
Both is labour & value added.
In a world where everyone gets enough money people could do what they actually want. So a CEO wouldn’t be “stuck” being a CEO if they don’t like that job & would rather be eg a baker. In the current system bcs of a huge pay divergence you get an unhappy CEO (who ofc won’t quit) and an unhappy baker that just couldn’t get a more suited paying job.
But we as a society would get a lot more out of life & cultural progression if people would be happy & satisfied at what they do (job=hobby).
Empirical evidence (even USA did extensive tests in the 60s) show that given a universal income (so basically no scarcity) basically nobody just sits around watching TV all day, everyone is productive (research, art, services, etc).
Imagine only having customer support or food industry workers that truly enjoy their job & want to do it.
How many prodigies are stuck at random dead end jobs with no prospects and life options?
Labour is what we all benefit from.
Work is what the employer/owner benefits from.
You’re so right, how can I find meaning without making somebody else’s money for them? Woe is me…
It’s not about making money, it’s about contributing to society, supporting your family. Being useful
I think people would find new ways to struggle that they actually enjoy and would likely end up contributing. Imagine a couple of thousand people with their new modest but stress free budgets decide to join a yearly potato cannon contest, Sure its not going to invent anything new directly but you now have a bunch of people learning about ballistics and stoichiometry and high pressure engineering all egging eachother on to shoot that potato further. The competition gets more and more fierce and with the much lower stakes people start trying some more out there ideas, before you know it you have a modest but highly effective solution to reliably obtaining the correct gas mixture for something like a combined light gas gun.
And that’s a deliberately silly example, you’d get a ton more art, people deciding to be athletes, coders, all sorts of hobies that can encourage healthy competition and often benefit society in surprising ways.