The 'Springsteen paradox' that explains why Trump won Michigan

[portlander23]

7. Yep

Automation is a big deal and we don't have anyone talking about answers. While this is a threat though we don't want to downplay this simple labor problem here. Technology always impacts jobs - the chainsaw cut down on the number of loggers you need. But it also leads to chainsaw manufacture, maintenance, etc. It's not necessarily an even trade, but it's not a straight loss either.

On the topic of labor, the reason why we used to have a stronger working class was because of artificial constraints on the labor market. Having to hire in the country, minimum wage, limits on the working day, etc. All of these things drive up the value of labor. When you allow companies to seek the cheapest (i.e. most exploitable) labor across the globe, these constraints start to break down and the value of labor drops. We've seen this with deindustrialization, but there's no reason knowledge workers won't be the displaced blue collar workers of the 21st century.