How Automation Designed to GIVE Us Free Time STEALS Our Free Time...

Sometimes I sit and ponder some of the basic paradoxes of human "achievement."

Whatever else might have been involved, the root idea behind automation and robotics was that "people wouldn't have to do the work."

Regardless of the whole "who profits" and "who gains influence" issue, there's an underlying implication there that when we automate processes it's basically convenient, as a result of which we might also have a little more chance and time to relax and take a break.

That looks good on the surface, but it's actually not so pretty when you peel back the layers and look at some of the deeper effects.

Late afternoon sun on the Cascade range, Washington

I Had A Loan Payment Due...

... on the 26th of December.

For my "convenience" the only way I even get to have this small line of credit is by allowing the loan payments to be automatically taken out of my account on the 26th of each month.

But how "convenient" is that for me, as the end user?

As a self-employed person, my income doesn't arrive on a fixed schedule. So automated payments actually make my life less convenient. I lose the ability to mail a check early if I happen to have the money, or "run a few days late" when I don't. I am now a slave to something very "fixed" in my non-fixed world.

Not only that, but I can't even count on a "banking day," any more. What's a "banking day?" Well, it used to mean that nothing was drawn from your account till 9:00am, and if it wasn't presented by 5:00pm, you had a reprieve till the next day.

Because the loan has to fund with either my PayPal account or a debit card, the payment does — indeed — get drawn on the 26th of every month... at about 45 minutes after midnight; 45 minutes into the 26th, which effectively means that the "due date" is the 25th.

Japanese Maple in fall...

Is this in any way "convenient?" Does it offer me a means to "relax?"

Ultimately, it's just another example of so-called "convenience" that is billed as a benefit to the consumer or end user, but in fact is mostly a convenience to the issuer or merchant.

Automation Steals Freedom?

The thing about automation is that it tends to be IN-flexible, while the human experience is inherently very fluid, unpredictable and flexible. So, in many ways, automation doesn't serve us.

These days there is much talk about the way robots and technology will gradually take over most jobs, in the course of the next 50 years. The entire concept of work is changing.

What does technology offer us? Well, the goal is perhaps fewer mistakes, and an almost perfect degree of uniformity in products, services, processes and so forth.

The question in my mind relates to how that is going to work in a world of infinitely differing human beings? My idea of "perfect" is probably not yours, and most likely also not "Bob's" or "Susan's."

If you project that out far enough, it seems like "being human" is actually in some conflict with automation.

Leaves turning in fall...

The second — and somewhat problematic — issue is that someone still has to consume all these products created by automation. So whereas the idea that I will have "more free time" theoretically looks feasible... I will still have to do something (presumably work?) in order to come up with the money to buy all these products being made. And since I am not really needed to work — a robot now has my old job — I am not relaxed at all, because I'm actually in sharper competition for resources (money) than I was before.

But is it really that bleak?

Hard to say, but I tend to play "Devil's Advocate" a lot.

I vaguely remember a quote on the wall in one of the break rooms at the Fortune 500 IT company where I once worked. It suggested the paradigm that "Man invents, Technology implements, Society follows."

I always had a problem with that, because of the hidden implication that society (aka "people") is going to follow technology... rather than technology follow people. People don't need to adapt to technology; technology needs to adapt to people.

Thanks for reading!

What do YOU think? Is automation mostly positive? Or is it negative? Does technology have side effects that actually enslaves humans rather than grant them freedom? Leave a comment-- share your experiences-- be part of the conversation!

(As usual, all text and images by the author, unless otherwise credited. This is original content, created expressly for Steemit)
Created at 181227 23:50 PDT