Roubini "These innovations result in labor savings. We have a structural problem with job creation"

[Nascimento]

Roubini the gawd at Davos, full quote:

What do policy makers need to address going forward?

They need to have polices that restore stronger growth. There is a risk that if people are unemployed long enough they atrophy, they lose skills, so I think we have not done enough on boosting aggregate demand by using appropriate monetary and fiscal policies or even credit easing.

I think the long-term issues that the tech gurus here all excited about — innovation from IT to energy technology to biotech to new manufacturing technology like robots automation, and so on — the problem with all these great innovations is that they tend to be capital intensive, skill biased, and result in labor savings. We have a structural problem with job creation, so I would think about changing the taxation of labor versus capital, how we invest in better educational systems, vocational schools, and reducing payroll taxes as a way to increase demand for labor. Otherwise you have vicious cycle of little job creation, a rise in the share of profits and GDP, redistributing form those spending to those saving, that further reduces aggregate demand.

So inequality was also a theme. You have here not just the top 1% but the top 0.01%, So between technology, globalization, trade, the winner-take-all superstar effect, inequality is rising. This is not just a "moral" issue but also an issue of too little consumption too little savings that is bad for global growth.

So it becomes vicious cycle. It's a bit like the old Marxist idea that if profits grow too much compared to wages, there's not going to be enough consumption, and capitalism is going to self destruct. So I think that insight of Karl Marx is as useful today as it was 100 years ago.

with the Marx reference. Care to chime in @Type Username Here
http://www.businessinsider.com/nouriel-roubini-mini-perfect-storm-2014-1

Yeah reducing taxation on labor sounds good in the near term, but I doubt it will be enough to address the coming reality. Automation will creep into all sectors of the economy. We need less people to do the necessary work, so where does that leave the idea of full employment as an organizing principle in society?

Spread the wealth around baby, or suffer even worse social turmoil.

 

[Yuzo]

Automation will creep into all sectors of the economy. We need less people to do the necessary work, so where does that leave the idea of full employment as an organizing principle in society?

Spread the wealth around baby, or suffer even worse social turmoil.

agree and it seems almost childish even at this point to hear people speak about job creation in any real sense. the logic of the situation has made itself clear by now. your ultimatum, marx's ultimatum, its all there is left.

 

[Type Username Here]

Roubini the gawd at Davos, full quote:


with the Marx reference. Care to chime in @Type Username Here
http://www.businessinsider.com/nouriel-roubini-mini-perfect-storm-2014-1

Yeah reducing taxation on labor sounds good in the near term, but I doubt it will be enough to address the coming reality. Automation will creep into all sectors of the economy. We need less people to do the necessary work, so where does that leave the idea of full employment as an organizing principle in society?

Spread the wealth around baby, or suffer even worse social turmoil.

Pretty much spot on. Marx's criticism of capitalism is so spot on and I think even the top Capitalists realize this. It feels like they are on a path to take as much as they can now before it all crumbles. Even Adam Smith wrote about taking proper care of the labor in society. That being said, once the labor is done by machines, who will buy the products?

I feel that the inevitable path to human progress is socialism where the labor is done by machines and we free ourselves
to take up academic, intellectual and artistic pursuits. I'm on my phone but I will be back in here later trying to build on all of this.

 

[Nascimento]

agree and it seems almost childish even at this point to hear people speak about job creation in any real sense. the logic of the situation has made itself clear by now. your ultimatum, marx's ultimatum, its all there is left.

I actually believe you have a better shot at 'full employment', or rather greater productivity, if you set up a decent welfare state that affords everyone in no uncertain terms the freedom to explore how they best fit in society. Gotta be a better way than 85 people having more wealth than half the world population

 

[Nigerianwonder]

Start with eliminating the 40 hour work week.