News Flash: Crops not rotting in the fields because growers are raising wages

[Tallpine]

So is there a robotic calf castrating machine    

[RevDisk]

2. Buggy-whip makers, grooms, and cart-drivers lose their jobs. However, far more jobs are create selling cars, fixing cars, and driving cars, as cars improve everyone's productivity and wealth.

But I suspect very much - and many people who are far smarter agree with me - that we are expecting a different paradigm now.

Now it will be... 'journalist is replaced by financial journalism software' (this already exists), 'journalist attempts to find burger-flipping job, job has been eaten by robot burger flippers', 'journalist attempts to find job as a truck driver, job has been obviated by driverless trucks'.

Pretty much. While I believe it will sort itself out eventually. At some point, we'll have the Culture and live in giant space ships that sort out everything for us. In the mean time... It'll be interesting. Even as a libertarian, I do recognize lots of folks out of work and unable to find a job that'll pay the bills means social unrest.

There are some jobs that aren't going to be replaced by machines for a very long time, simply because the technology doesn't exist.
Also, there is always plenty of work available for people willing to do hard work. Sadly, very few Americans are willing to break a sweat for pay check- especially when a government handout is a lot easier and completely painless.

Meh. I've done hard manual labor at well below minimum wage. I don't know if I doubt it noble. It was educational, but so was starvation, dehydration, injuries, long term sleep deprivation. Breaking a sweat for a paycheck isn't shameful. But I learned not to break a swear unless it pays.

Manual ag work doesn't pay well. So folks tend not to go for it. Supply and demand. Unless you cheat and break the law, or pay to have the law changed. If government handout pays more than manual labor, then sure, you'll have an issue.

[MicroBalrog]

Human critters are more adaptable than machinery, so I suspect your prediction premature.

Just so we are clear:

I do not mean that absolutely nobody, anywhere, will be working in HML.

I certainly think that:

1. Far, far less people will be working in HML in civilized Western countries ten years from now than do now.

2. The definition of HML will shift, to include 'softer' ML jobs. Lots of current HML jobs will go extinct (burger-flippers we already mentioned).

3. Many people who are not capable of doing anything other than HML will be unemployed.

[Stand_watie]

There are some jobs that aren't going to be replaced by machines for a very long time, simply because the technology doesn't exist.
Also, there is always plenty of work available for people willing to do hard work. Sadly, very few Americans are willing to break a sweat for pay check- especially when a government handout is a lot easier and completely painless.

I was talking about shoveling tons of material by hand because they don't want to replace the hydraulic hose on the skid steer loader. Because once they replace the hose, we'll drive it. And then you know...it'll break. Or get worn out.

[brimic]

Just so we are clear:

I do not mean that absolutely nobody, anywhere, will be working in HML.

I certainly think that:

1. Far, far less people will be working in HML in civilized Western countries ten years from now than do now.

2. The definition of HML will shift, to include 'softer' ML jobs. Lots of current HML jobs will go extinct (burger-flippers we already mentioned).

3. Many people who are not capable of doing anything other than HML will be unemployed.

Your thinking is completely inside the box of mass produced consumer goods and those who are employed to put put screw 'A' into hole 'B.'
I agree with you within those parameters.
I also think that at some given time in the future, people will tire of disposable trinkets and low quality 'durable goods' anyway that are produced largely in part by manual labor.
The people who I know personally that are the wealthiest also happen to be 'manual laborers' who aren't employed by anyone but their customers- masons, plumbers, excavators, and farmers.

[brimic]

I was talking about shoveling tons of material by hand because they don't want to replace the hydraulic hose on the skid steer loader. Because once they replace the hose, we'll drive it. And then you know...it'll break. Or get worn out.

Oh. That is just godzilla---> dumb by the company.

[MicroBalrog]

The people who I know personally that are the wealthiest also happen to be 'manual laborers' who aren't employed by anyone but their customers- masons, plumbers, excavators, and farmers.

I think it's generally known - Justin will correct me if I am wrong - that a farmer that is financially successful typically employs a lot of people in the fields.

It is these people that will be replaced by technology.

[zahc]

Controlled cross pollination- There are three rows of corn planted very close together with a regulare width row in between each group of 3.
The middle ro is your 'male' plant and the two flanking rows are the 'female' plants. The idea is to pull the tassels out of the 'female' plants so they can't self- pollinate which are in turn pollinated by the 'male' plants.

Ok, now I understand what it is, but don't understand the point. Why is max polination not a good thing? Is this done in an attempt to selectively breed corn (e.g. the "male" plants are are Variety A and "female" plants are Variety B)?

[Sergeant Bob]

Ok, now I understand what it is, but don't understand the point. Why is max polination not a good thing? Is this done in an attempt to selectively breed corn (e.g. the "male" plants are are Variety A and "female" plants are Variety B)?

It is used in the breeding of hybrids. The detasseled plants are pollinated by the tassled (of different strain) plants.

I admit that although surrounded by cornfields for a good portion of my life, I had to look it up!

[Zardozimo Oprah Bannedalas]

Hard manual labor is good for the soul, and for the body.

Money is better for both. 

Isn't one of the issues with crop-picking that it requires a lot of moving from place to place? Not just in the field, but state to state?