City Burning

TF

I have used that quote often in my HS classes on government.

Good stuff to think about.

EB

Poem is thought provoking for sure - good stuff as well !
Jim     

That is a very good poem EB . I think as more and more people around the world find life hard we will see more people rioting as they have in Paris..They are people who have found that the cost of living has got out of hand for them to survive..
While some new jobs are being created in the world economies, many are now in the low-paying sectors and are usually temporary. Corporate leaders and mainstream economists tell us that the rising unemployment figures represent short-term "adjustments" to powerful market-driven forces that are speeding the global economy in a new direction. They hold out the promise of an exciting new world of high-tech automated production, booming global commerce, and unprecedented material abundance. Well a simple person like me can’t believe that or see it happening. The role of humans as the most important factor of production is bound to diminish in the same way that the role of horses in agricultural production was first diminished and then eliminated by the introduction of tractors. In all three key employment sectors - agriculture, manufacturing, and services, machines are quickly replacing human labour and promise an economy of near automated production by the mid-decades of this century As the new generation of "smart" robots, armed with greater intelligence and flexibility, make their way to the market, manufacturers are far more likely to substitute them for workers because they are most cost effective. It is estimated each robot replaces four jobs in the economy, and if in constant use twenty-four hours a day, will pay for itself in just over one year.  The number of robots is expected to rise dramatically in the coming decades as thinking machines become far more intelligent, versatile, and flexible. Already, millions of workers have been permanently eliminated from the economic process, and whole work categories and job assignments have shrunk, been restructured, or disappeared. Global unemployment has now reached its highest level since the great depression of the 1930s. More  human beings are now unemployed or underemployed in the world. The numbers are likely to rise sharply in future years as millions of new entrants into the workforce find themselves without jobs. Sorry I better stop my raving.. My point is as people find it harder to pay their way, they are more likely to take to the streets and  riot.