this post was submitted on 22 May 2026
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76
The AI Backlash Could Get Very Ugly. Imagine what happens if jobs actually start disappearing. (www.theatlantic.com)
submitted 7 hours ago by FoxtrotDeltaTango@sh.itjust.works to c/technology@lemmy.world
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[–] gandalf_der_12te@feddit.org 3 points 32 minutes ago (1 children)

I mean, being against AI is not really a long-term solution. It's just pushing the can further down the road. Eventually, a lot of jobs will be lost anyways, due to conventional automation that has already happened the last 200 years. Progress is not an infinite story. It brings us from A to B and once we're there, it's the end of progress. Without progress, there are very few jobs, and there's absolutely no way that there'll be enough jobs for everybody in 30 years from now, AI or no AI. i don't see the protests against AI changing anything at all about that, even if they were effective (which they are very clearly not btw).

Really we need to find a way to organize society around something else than perpetual work. Only then can we find peace. I propose formulating laws around a society using universal basic income or some equivalent thereof (such as universal basic services). Just write a proposal for these laws, because only once there are meaningful proposals, we can actually demand politicians to implement them. So just start thinking about it now. The sooner, the better.

[–] Crit@lemmy.wtf 2 points 6 minutes ago (1 children)

I don't think people have a problem with progress as a concept, but the AI shift is a major hit on the job market and therefore the economy and governments are failing the people. Not only that but the replacements are subpar and generally make things worse and add a huge amount of technical debt. People are losing livelihoods in a system that doesn't care for them and hasn't cared for them in ages, and it's all decided by business suits that fall for weak marketing.

[–] gandalf_der_12te@feddit.org 1 points 4 minutes ago

well, i'd go as far as to say that the reason why politicians haven't cared about people in ages is because there was no reason to care for people. if you treat people badly and make sure that they're stuck in a miserable position, that makes it more likely that they'll take on crippling jobs and bad working conditions. if there are no jobs to be done in the first place, then that just means that you don't have a reason to keep the people in these miserable conditions anymore.

[–] jordanlund@lemmy.world 6 points 2 hours ago (1 children)

"If"? 🤔

[–] tidderuuf@lemmy.world 7 points 2 hours ago (1 children)

AI hasn't taken anyone's job.

The Epstein class use AI as an excuse to fire thousands and artificially lower wages to keep the plebs in check for the next few decades.

[–] jordanlund@lemmy.world 3 points 1 hour ago (1 children)

I've personally seen multiple departments eliminated because they would rather send the jobs to Indian sub contractors backed by AI.

[–] EncryptKeeper@lemmy.world 5 points 1 hour ago (1 children)

Right so it was outsourced to Indians. Thats old news.

[–] jordanlund@lemmy.world 0 points 59 minutes ago

It wouldn't have been without AI. They believe telling them to use AI is cheaper.

[–] bigbangdangler@reddthat.com 40 points 7 hours ago (3 children)

Even the headline is wrong. Jobs have already started disappearing due to AI.

[–] AngryRedHerring@lemmy.world 11 points 5 hours ago (1 children)

I did some AI training a couple of years ago. Turned out I trained the AI to do what I was doing.

Fool me once...

[–] lastlybutfirstly@lemmy.world 4 points 4 hours ago (1 children)

What job were you doing that AI can do it?

[–] W98BSoD@lemmy.dbzer0.com 1 points 24 minutes ago

Writing snarky emails to end users.

[–] echodot@feddit.uk 2 points 3 hours ago

I would love to see an AI trying to my job. It's useless at almost every aspect except for seeming like it knows what it's talking about.

So the higher ups who never know anything will listen to it, implemented it's dumb suggestions that are either unworkable or actually illegal and will burn the company to the ground. It would be hilarious if it weren't for the fact that I would be out of a job.

They want a new financial management solution (currently they're using some ancient thing on SAP) they've looked at a few solutions but they don't like any of them because they all cost a lot of money since they all go with the subscription model these days rather than just letting you buy the software in one big payment. They have actually considered letting an AI right some software for them. Should be fun.

[–] FaceDeer@fedia.io 1 points 6 hours ago (1 children)

I'm told that AI can't actually replace humans, so presumably those jobs will be back in short order.

[–] thejml@sh.itjust.works 9 points 4 hours ago

They were just layoffs in disguise, so they wont be back for a while.

[–] etherphon@piefed.world 24 points 7 hours ago (2 children)

This article starts by earnestly quoting Steve Bannon so fuck it and fuck him.

We've at a very strange time, there is no question things will probably get ugly as they usually do in these uncomfortable transition periods between eras.

[–] WatDabney@sopuli.xyz 15 points 6 hours ago (1 children)

Yeah - there's a fairly significant game of The Emperor's New Clothes going on, as the new set of impossibly wealthy assholes insist on pretending they're not impossibly wealthy assholes and instead try to force society into accommodating them, apparently entirely unaware of the simple fact that all they're doing is hastening the demise of the civilization that birthed them and on which they're little more than grossly destructive parasites.

And that's not an opinion - either mine or anyone else's. It's a simple fact that's been borne out by history over and over throughout the ages, and will be again, no matter how many comforting lies people tell themselves and each other.

[–] etherphon@piefed.world 5 points 6 hours ago (1 children)

I just don't get the lack of vision, these massive data centers are just such incredible wastes you have to be so deluded to think they are a good idea at this point in time, but here we go, these guys are all in on them. I hope it leads to their downfall since no one but them really wants them no matter how many emerging markets they get hooked on using their slop machines. Time will tell though.

[–] WatDabney@sopuli.xyz 7 points 5 hours ago (1 children)

The thing with the data centers is that the goal is entirely different from anything we've been told.

The key is that Google is implementing a system that allows people to get the information they're after directly from them rather than clicking theough to a website. That's undermining ad revenue, which not only threatens the existence of the websites but threatens Google's existing ad-based business model.

So it can only be the case that they're pivoting to a new business model.

And the key to that is the data centers.

Their goal, I grow more certain nearly every day, is to effectively privatize the internet by driving independent sites out of business, so that they (and their handful of more or less equally wealthy and powerful competitors) become the only source for all of that data they've already stolen.

[–] etherphon@piefed.world 2 points 5 hours ago

That seems like a goal for like, 10 or 15 years ago but nowadays apps have pretty much destroyed it anyways, although I suppose one could see the attractiveness of an all knowing information portal, to me half of the fun was always the research and digging in and finding things because you come up with happy accidents and surprises along the way, when everything is curated or there are strict rules in places, the quality of the content suffers enormously and originality and unique ideas die.

[–] masterspace@lemmy.ca -4 points 4 hours ago* (last edited 4 hours ago) (1 children)

Hey everyone, check out how edgy and dismissive this guy is!

God, not listening or thinking is so cool. How do you maintain your ability to not engage with the discussion topic while still thinking you have something to say that's worth listening to?

[–] etherphon@piefed.world 6 points 4 hours ago (1 children)

I have no problem with giving people time. I have a problem with people who have shown themselves to be liars and disingenuous time and time again to be given equal time to people who are trying to tell the truth. I have a problem with these give an inch steal a mile assholes who have taken over everything because people are not standing up to the gas filled bullies. The fact that you're even making that argument is disingenuous. This man is a dangerous white supremacist and they are treating him like Joe Everyday. Fuck that.

[–] masterspace@lemmy.ca 1 points 4 hours ago* (last edited 4 hours ago) (1 children)

Yeah, and he's quoted once to make the point that the fact that someone like that, and someone like Bernie Sanders agree on AI hurting workers, shows that the anti-AI backlash is cross partisan.

Your righteous ignorance is just anti-intellectual trash.

Read the full article, then critique it and him if you want, or keep your mouth shut and don't judge a full article because it's opening line quotes someone you despise when you don't even understand that the context is not validating or praise worthy.

[–] etherphon@piefed.world 1 points 4 hours ago (1 children)

MY point is he should not even be quoted or mentioned anywhere because his fucking opinion as a giant piece of shit doesn't matter. Good day.

[–] masterspace@lemmy.ca 0 points 4 hours ago (1 children)

Yeah, and my point is that your point is anti-intellectual horseshit wrapped in righteous indignation.

[–] etherphon@piefed.world 0 points 4 hours ago (1 children)

Agree to disagree, white supremacists are not intellectuals.

[–] masterspace@lemmy.ca 1 points 4 hours ago* (last edited 4 hours ago) (1 children)

Lmfao, so now Lila Shroff, staff writer at the Atlantic, is a white supremacist?

The quote was being used to make the article author's point in the context of the article, it wasn't a feed of quotes the author found inspiring from people they think you should pay attention to.

By your logic Robert Evans of Behind the Bastards fame is a white supremacist because he's quoted them before.

[–] etherphon@piefed.world 1 points 3 hours ago

I don't believe that people who have shown themselves to be liars should be given equal time, that is why we are in the situation we are in in the first place, these assholes all called foul and free speech and now we have gestapos in our neighborhoods are you kidding? Of course I will call these guys out every chance I get. Why don't we see what Charlie Manson thinks about it too? I don't know man, it's just ridiculous. There's too many hatemongers with megaphones, so his name need not even be mentioned.

[–] kibblebits@quokk.au 6 points 7 hours ago

Don’t name your kid Al