It truly proves the theory that automation and AI can only be a positive force under socialism. Unlike in capitalism, where it’s used to maximize profit for a few shareholders and create a reserve army of unemployed workers.
Exactly. Technology, in Socialism, enhances and elevates workers. While in Capitalism, it will be used against the worker.
For me, the metaphor of the knife(tool) works to illustrate these:
- A knife(tool) in hand of a chef will be used to produce good food. While a knife(tool) in the hands of a murderer will be used to take away lives.
Under socialism it’s just a net gain because you’ve freed people from tedious, back breaking labor. You don’t even need them to start doing other labor, really, like if that labor they were doing before was enough to “earn their keep” then hey now the robot’s doing it, these people can sit on their asses still getting paid and society would chug along just the same. But people like to do things and even if that were an option most of them would want to do other productive shit with their time, whether training for another job or furthering their education or producing art or media. Freeing people from drudgery when their livelihoods and ability to sustain themselves isn’t on the line is nothing but good.
But under capitalist wage labor, without extreme (for the system) intervention (which there’s no political will for anywhere in the west) shit like this would just dump millions on the streets with no alternative to feed themselves. Every innovation becomes a cycle of benefits to some and extreme suffering to others.
This AI shit is even more of the same, even if it’s not a bubble that’s doomed to fail at its stated goals, what happens when it suddenly replaces all the workers they say they want to replace? There’s no push for any plan to deal with that, just “charge forward to the singularity!” even though achieving that goal will be just as harmful to the average worker as the bubble fucking bursting
Deep down as a westerner, you know the answer to what You NEED to do next when the capitalists attempt to replace the western workers:
- Organize and revolt against the capitalists. Take the means of production and bring socialism to existence. Put all of that anger and frustration into attaining that goal through organization and agitation.
As for the AES like China and the countries in the Global South that will follow, AI/Robotics/Automation will not replace the workers and this was stated even officially by Liang Liang, a deputy director at the Beijing Economic-Technological Development Area. This article from a Chinese procurement specialist echoes this:
- The question of whether AI will replace jobs or create new ones is at the heart of the global debate on automation. While it is undeniable that AI automates certain repetitive or hazardous tasks, the broader reality is that it also generates new roles and increases overall labor demand. In China, for example, the rapid adoption of industrial robots has led to a net increase in employment, as efficiency gains and new business models spur growth in ancillary sectors. Studies indicate that as companies scale up AI-driven operations, they require more skilled workers to manage, maintain, and innovate upon these systems. The narrative is shifting from one of replacement to one of augmentation: AI is enabling workers to focus on higher-value, creative, and strategic activities, while machines handle the drudgery. Human-machine collaboration is becoming the norm, with AI serving as a powerful tool that amplifies human ingenuity rather than rendering it obsolete. This shift has significant implications for workforce development. The demand for digital and AI-related skills is surging, prompting companies to invest heavily in reskilling and upskilling programs. Employees who embrace continuous learning are finding new opportunities in roles that didn’t exist a decade ago, from AI ethics officers to data-driven supply chain strategists. Rather than fearing displacement, forward-thinking professionals are leveraging AI to enhance their own capabilities, secure their positions in the evolving marketplace, and drive innovation within their organizations. Source -> https://insights.made-in-china.com/Why-the-AI-Boom-Won-t-Replace-You-But-Will-Change-Everything-You-Buy_ZfltKFSHZEDL.html
yeah I know all that but like you try explaining that to my coworkers
all the lead poisoning and propaganda has them think communism is evil because no human rights but they want all the commies dead and see no problem with “better dead than red” as a statement on human rights. You explain it to them and they go uh huh, uh huh, uh huh, nodding along until you get to the final point which is that capitalism is a problem and they are slaves within it, then they just get mad and say kill all immigrants
I understand your frustration. However, don’t let that frustration make you think your voice is small and weak when in reality it is the contrary.
For me, these two essays helped when agitating the people around me:
- https://redsails.org/masses-elites-and-rebels/
- https://redsails.org/water-droplets-drilling-through-rock/
The first essay teaches you a way to talk about this topics with better strategies. Lots of americans and latin americans in China have been using it for different topics to show how incredible is the difference between socialism and capitalism and you can see for yourself that it is working. People that were in classes that regularly go against us are fighting with us.
The second essay even gives a dialectical lesson that could apply to agitation which is the water droplets that drill the rock:
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Upon settling in the countryside, I saw firsthand the power of dripping water drilling through rock. That image, which captured the spirit of persistence, has stayed with me all these years. It has become a well-worn source for contemplating life and movement.
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Rock and water are two opposing elements that are used to symbolize dogged stubbornness and gentle fluidity. Yet despite being “gentle,” water will drill through “solid” rock over time.
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As a metaphor for people, this is the embodiment of a certain moral character: it is the willingness to rise to fight each time one falls and the courage to sacrifice oneself. A single drop of water is small and insubstantial. It will die a cruel “death” in any battle with a rock. Yet in that brief moment of “sacrifice,” even though it cannot see its own value and achievement, it is embodied within the countless drops of water that have already fallen, and the triumph of finally drilling through the rock.
For me, this is a good example of what agitation could really do when we persevere like the water droplet. Instead of looking at agitation like a battle on “who’s right and who’s wrong”, we should strive to make steady progress one small step at a time and be willing to lay the groundwork for overall success. Introduce them to class consciousness and study your coworkers to see what are they struggling with. One example of a topic that I am currently is gentrification in Mexico. Gentrification is something that people are all facing but you can slowly push for hightening their knowledge when you point them to the source of the problem: capitalism(through landowners and capitalist speculation)
Don’t give up comrade. You might not see the gains but soon the qualitative changes will kick in to the point that you might be pleasantly surprised.
USA invented ICE for this…
