Quote:
Originally Posted by sylar
You are not going to replace the truck drivers with no one for *AWHILE*, maybe a really long while. You will still have a driver/pilot in the seat, but he'll be doing less effort for the same or more amount of work. The industry will also hire many schooled and skilled technicians who have to service the new, infinitely more complex truck.
I remember learning about luddites in middle school. On the one hand you can totally sympathize with them. OTOH, historically the technological advancements themselves made life way better not worse, even for the very people it displaced. I side with history in this case and vote/pay taxes for safety nets to actually help such people. No one seems to mind that elevator operators ceased to exist.
I agree with a lot of that but what are the drivers going to make? At the moment the industry is dying for drivers. If you have a CDL A you can get a job anywhere and have a decent life. 50-60k easy. I have a CDL A and I've driven a little here and there. It took me a month to learn and I don't have a lot of hours behind the wheel but I can do it. The industry is moving to automatics right now. Largely in part to the fact it's hard to find people that can drive these things safely. Making all the trucks auto's enlarges the potential hiring pool. All you really have to worry about then is drifting, following distances, and backing up. Obviously there's a little more to it but shifting a 13 speed or even an 18 speed takes skill. There's tricks to it. That skill set is being phased out.
I agree that it's probably dumb to try and hold back technology but I would really like to see people that aren't gifted have a decent life in this country.