Musing a bit about the future

If I got my wish, and nuclear power were to take over in the United States, what would it mean?

It may well mean that lots of coal miner jobs would disappear.  It may well mean a lot of oil field worker's jobs may disappear.  This is not something to which I have given thought.  Most likely, there are only a few people who might be happy with what I suggest.  The political aspect of this not only encompasses the fear of radiation, but the loss of blue collar jobs as well.  Not to mention the big wigs who stand to lose big if their industries go obsolete.  In short, nobody likes this except for a few geeks and dreamers.

It seems that in years past, when some new idea made things more efficient, people would enthusiastically adopt it.  That's because a link was set up between progress and higher wages.  That link seems to have been broken.  It may have been broken with the coming of robotics.  There seems to be less and less need for human labor.  The machines are costing people jobs.  Now, technological progress could be seen as an enemy, not a friend.  This could be bringing out the Luddite faction.

And not without reason, mind you.  Unless you can come up with a compelling reason why nuclear is better for lots of people, they are not likely to want to support it.

What could replace the jobs lost to the machines?  Now, I have given that some thought.  I figured if worst came to worst, people could start growing their own food again.  Yes, you heard right.  One of the oldest professions is the growing of food.   It could make a comeback.

But growing food doesn't pay money.  No, but in a world of radical abundance, you may not need much money.  Money may even become obsolete.  After all, markets exist to ration scarcity.  When there's no scarcity, no rationing is needed.  When you strip away everything, you only need the basics.  Food, shelter and clothing.  It doesn't take that much to keep you going.

Not that people should want only a subsistence form of life.  But why work when there's nothing to do and the machines do it all?  How to pass the time?  People could divert themselves in whatever way suits them.  Even the growing of one's own food would not necessarily take a lot of time.  After all, the plants are doing all the work.

But how to pay for things?  You would still have to do something for money, wouldn't you?  Yes, but it could be for only a short time.  The machines would do most of the hard work.  People would do higher level tasks.  If only to supervise machines, let's say.

In a really advanced society, money would be needed less and less.  Prices for goods would be rather low because of extreme abundance.  There would be a lot more time for leisure and self development, if that's your wish.

Life would change.  It may be rather tumultuous in the beginning as all change is, but people would adjust to the new reality.  Things may take a bit getting used to, but people are adaptable.

The real question is whether or not people will allow the change to occur.  Will people hold on to the past, or embrace the future?

Time will answer that question.