Even that is just a one time boost. If the automation is done there is nothing to be done better. So to grow further people have to be fired or other sources of revenue have to be unlocked.
I still think, sustained growth is impossible in the long run.
I still think, sustained growth is impossible in the long run.
Oh yeah, for sure. All production consumes natural resources at some point in the chain, even services. And natural resources are finite. Even if we recycle everything, we’d still have a finite amount we have to work with beyond which we can’t expand. If the driving force behind the production expansion is primarily profit growth, then there’s no satisfying that. That’s an inherent problem with the capitalist system. If however the driving force is the need for making something that doesn’t exist - e.g. more tanks, more wind turbines, more scientific researchers, more musicians, then automation can help a lot. But even for purely profit-driven growth, automation would provide a lot more runway than making people work more hours. I know you’re not disagreeing, I’m just saying this for completeness. :D
I have to thank you for pointing out, that you wanted to say that automation would help more than let people work more. That is a fact that I lost sight of. :)
Even that is just a one time boost. If the automation is done there is nothing to be done better. So to grow further people have to be fired or other sources of revenue have to be unlocked.
I still think, sustained growth is impossible in the long run.
Exactly. There cannot be infinite growth on a finite planet.
And we have reached the planetary limits a while ago, as evidenced by the environmental collapse we are all witnessing.
Oh yeah, for sure. All production consumes natural resources at some point in the chain, even services. And natural resources are finite. Even if we recycle everything, we’d still have a finite amount we have to work with beyond which we can’t expand. If the driving force behind the production expansion is primarily profit growth, then there’s no satisfying that. That’s an inherent problem with the capitalist system. If however the driving force is the need for making something that doesn’t exist - e.g. more tanks, more wind turbines, more scientific researchers, more musicians, then automation can help a lot. But even for purely profit-driven growth, automation would provide a lot more runway than making people work more hours. I know you’re not disagreeing, I’m just saying this for completeness. :D
I have to thank you for pointing out, that you wanted to say that automation would help more than let people work more. That is a fact that I lost sight of. :)