Fear Not "the Machine"

Despite an inability of many to get to work the past couple of days, there is a ray of hope about the economy. The unemployment rate dropped again in February to 5.5 percent. The job scene of course is still evolving as the Internet has largely put an end to certain positions like messengers and even wordprocessors. Today, there is no need to learn how to type the so called "correct way" as muscle memory has proved formal training in this discipline is unnecessary. For most businesses, spelling and grammar checkers are sufficient and the traditional role of a copywriter is diminished. The good news is that for every door that closes, a new one opens if you know where to look. Websites still need to be managed, a social presence on the Internet will have to be maintained and networks will still require routine work. Increased mechanization may eliminate some traditional jobs but fortunately, most companies cannot afford to spend 40 million dollars on a robot even if it reduces staff costs. This will not stop the big car manufacturers from making the investment but rest assured that it is unrealistic people will ever be fully replaced by machines. The initial investment, maintenance costs and reliability issues will always plague the field of robotics. People may not always be reliable either but I'd be willing to bet in 1,000 years, you'll still see far more humans in factories than robots.