In Brian Merchant’s article, “Fully Automated Luxury
Communism”, he explains the very intriguing belief that eventually, the world
will be completely and totally automated, free of human labor which will allow
anybody and everybody to experience luxury. With various companies constantly looking
for the next way to reduce labor costs, I can see where these “communists” think
it is possible. In my opinion though, I disagree. Although this concept sounds
as if it will benefit everyone, I can see certain issues arising. “Recent research indicates that 35% of jobs in the UK are “at risk” of being automated.”
Fully automated luxury would mean that eventually most human labor would be obsolete.
Humans would only be needed in the case of “quality control”. Imagine a life
where people no longer feel the need to better themselves because there is no
longer competition for anything. People would no longer feel the need to pursue
an education or even learn new things because there would be no real
goal in mind. Besides society becoming inherently lazy, a fully technological
world would provide means for potential hackers. If a technology as powerful as
one like a fully functional robot got placed in the wrong hands, that could
mean disaster for everyone. I do agree that technology should continue striving
for world where certain things are made more convenient and lighten the burden
that labor costs cause for companies, but one that is completely automated
weakens human beings as a whole. Humans by nature are the most intelligent
animals on the planet and FALC would only lead humans to plateau. This system would
cause complete laziness and will eventually cause us to lose the functionality
of such an incredible organ like or brain. Although this idea sounds appealing
and beneficial to all, I disagree with the idea that there should be a world that
is competently free of labor.
Hey Alessandra, I actually completely disagree with Brian Merchant's article "Fully Automated Luxury Communism" as a whole. Yes, I do see what he is trying to say about technology coming up and now starting to take over the things that humans do, but if it weren’t for the humans creating these machines there would be nothing. Who’s supposed to be there to fix a machine if it gets broken or something? They cannot make a machine for every single job in the world. It is just not possible. I also in fact, disagree with him when he speaks on his idea of a world free of labor. I mean how could anyone think that this in any way smart, let alone is it health. Now on the other hand I do agree with you when you talk on how this would create completely lazy people. If the world was to get to this point then I think everyone would almost be just like they were in the move, “Wall-e”. Everyone started to gain a lot of weight, due to lack of activity. All they did all day was sit in their chairs and direct every single thing that they did off of a tablet attached to it. From moving around, to talking, even down to eating and drinking. This is what the world would come down to in this instance. To me, this is just as close to being brainwashed, to let a computer take over your whole life and do everything for you.
ReplyDeleteI disagree with the article written by Brian Merchant "Fully Automated Luxury Communism." I'm pretty sure everyone knows that in the future we will have a world where we will have more advanced technology but I don't believe that technology will be so advanced that us humans will have nothing to do. What if the robots start breaking down who is going to fix them? I don't believe that once technology becomes so advanced that the need for human labor will just vanish. Its pretty much impossible to make a machine for every task that is thrown our way. I don't think that the earth will survive if there is no human labor. The way the author talks it seems like his best audience are the lazy people in the world. I feel like if this does become a reality then the obesity rate will skyrocket.
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