This sounds like the same discussion about mechanised domestic goods like washing machines and so on. I wasn’t around at the time, but historically weren’t people post WW2 (westerners is my reference here) told that they’d have more free time due to advances in technology? Women would hardly have to do any housework, and men would benefit from better technology at work etc.
It feels like my cohort still works 40+ hours a week, and spends all their money on housing, food etc. Now I’ll acknowledge I’m from an educated working cohort so some of my friends also travel, have bigger houses etc. So they’re definitely not living like post war families in 3bed1bath places with a radio or one black and white tv. But they wouldn’t say the automation of domestic duties turned them into folk of leisure.
It has certainly made a society where the women in my life feel they can have families and working careers that they choose. So there’s definitely been some social advancement that this has helped along – obviously backed by a lot of women putting themselves on the line to fight for equality. But for some of them it now means they work and then spend their evenings on childcare – helped in varying degrees by partners who might honestly not take their full share of the load.
The women in my life with the most choices, are also the most educated. I don’t think it’s a stretch to say the two are causally linked. Also, I doubt AI will be coming for their careers. Hopefully AI and the next waves of automation allow us as a society to focus on raising all boats on this lifting tide but hoo boy looking around I sure doubt it.
Bill Gates quote in this article that I laughed at the most was “If society is able to make all the food, homes, and consumer goods it needs, then workers should be allowed to relax, and focus on other interests, Gates argues.”
It seems that Bills hanging out with retired billionaires who are enjoying a bit of stock funded philanthropy. He should spend 2 minutes with Jeff “work til you die peasants” Bezos and see what the current up and coming billionaires think of the little people having some time off.
-Brett Cravaliat, nodding politely.
Brett Cravaliat 