(07-24-2017, 11:32 AM)The Real Marty Wrote:

(07-24-2017, 10:53 AM)Dumptruck Wrote: It is up to the folks who do these jobs to make the effort to seek some sort of alternative employment or training. You can't force people to take the initiative but at a certain point it should appeal to their self interest to stay ahead of potential issues.

Coal miners didn't do that.  Factory workers didn't do that.  Steel workers didn't do that.   The loss of those jobs was completely predictable, and yet the people who stood to lose those jobs are now on unemployment, medicaid, and whatever other government help they can get.   Asking people to be forward-looking and get into another business is just asking too much of average people.  They always wind up unemployed with no other skills.  

In the future, there is little doubt that low-skilled workers are going to be replaced by technology and robotics.  There is absolutely no doubt about it.   AND, I would predict that there will be so many of these displaced workers that they will ask the government to redistribute wealth.  

It seems to me that we have to bend our conservative free-market principles just a little to stave off a movement to have the government confiscate wealth from working people and give it to the displaced.   We need to be forward thinking for a change and do something while it's easy and not wait for the time when doing something will be very hard.

It's up to the smart people to help out the dumb people before the dumb people rise up against the smart people.

But, that's just my opinion.  I'm interested in anyone else's opinion.

I live in the heart of coal country (WV). They offered job training and college to out of work miners. The vast majority of them passed on it in favor of government assistance. If it comes down to leaving where you were born to find work, they would rather stay where they are and live on the government dime. You can only do so much to help people who don't want to help themselves. 

The only way they could change this mentality is to have something like the Tennessee Valley Authority where people would have to move to where government supplied jobs are located or else they don't get benefits. Fat chance of this happening.

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