Part 55 - I have a dream...

Research and polling by Australia's ABC has shown a significant commonality in what people are most concerned with in Australia and it is probably fair to say that this would be similar in most comparable countries.

The most common concerns are:

• Household debt
• Cost of living
• Ageing
• Poverty
• Wealth inequity
• The economy
• Unemployment
• Drug and alcohol abuse and water also figure prominently

Most of the issues are related to money in one way or another and when you take into consideration  the future of work from a perspective of automation and AI then at first glance the outlook appears to be much bleaker.

AI and automation will change the workforce and reduce jobs, that's a given.

But the outlook doesn't have to be negative.

If the government chooses to look at Australia from a realistic view instead of a political one, then we may have a chance of addressing our concerns and turn automation to our advantage.

But when government's main focus is to take us back to a rose coloured 1950's then we're all in strife. 

If we don't have jobs and have to rely on $40 a day, be abused as not wanting to work and have to compete fiercely for those that are available, then "Houston, we have a problem".

And it won't get better.

An aging population will create labour shortages in the short term which will be filled by automation. 

This will produce less jobs and those that are available will require a higher skill set which many people won't have or be able to get through a lack of education or ability. Not everyone has the potential to become highly educated, that's a fact of nature not laziness or lack of application.

We are what we are.

So if you have a go, it doesn't mean that you will get a go, the real world doesn't work that way, it just looks good on a campaign slogan.

So how do we fix this?

Not easily and not quickly but we do need to get the ball rolling by firstly getting engagement from politicians and industry and acceptance of the fact that world is changing rapidly and we need to change with it.

That is probably the biggest hurdle, dragging politicians into the 21st century.

Industry should be easier as they know the impact of technology on their business and that if they don't have customers with money then they don't have a market.

Once people are on board we need to look at the welfare systems and how to change the thinking in this area to reflect reality.

$40 a day wont cut it when we have a large percentage of the population relying on public income to live when there is little prospect of getting a job in the foreseeable future.

Universal basic income has to be an option and the best way of doing that has to be determined in a fair and equable way not by political consideration.

However to do nothing will condemn a large part of the population to a life of poverty and despair.

In a simplistic view we must use technology to produce output faster at lower cost and use the savings to fund UBI, obvious much more involved than that, but the point is we have to get the conversation started.

We can be a prosperous country in the new age and share it for all people not just a few as the time for having our collective heads buried in sand is long past.

If we don't exploit change to our advantage then we will become victims of it.
#votepirate
#BasicIncome

  

    

Part 54 - Australia, the future is in your hands

Australia and much of the world is at a crossroads that most people don't even realise exists.

We have an ageing population which means that as the older generations retire we have less people left in the workforce.

Combine that with the fact that most people today in Australia don't leave school until year 12 and many go on to university so we have a higher educated group entering the workforce.
Higher education and being born into an age where their parents are usually reasonably well off means that job expectations are quite high.

So, we are approaching a point where there will be less people to fill jobs and those left have high expectations and can pick and choose.

Therein lies a problem.

Who fills the low paid repetitive jobs?

A few solutions:

• Bring in cheaper foreign workers
• Outsource the jobs overseas
• Automate the jobs and keep them in Australia

Given the current world of politics, the first two choices would not go down well, so automation and keeping it in the country would be the logical choice.

OK so now we have a solution, but it pushes even bigger problems down the track. 

When the baby boomers are out of the work system, they will live longer but won't live forever. Then we get the new generations becoming the majority and looking for work, but by then we have very high levels of automation.

Now what?

  

This is when we get the real impact where there are more people than jobs and less and less jobs being created.

This is where social systems have to change.

Being unemployed will no longer be considered as a liability but the new normal for many people, particularly those that don't have high tech capability and don't have the ability to get there.  

As a responsible society we have an obligation to ensure everyone has the right to an income and can choose how they live their lives.

So, do we wait until we reach that point and tackle it then? 

NO. 

The time to act is now. 

Government must begin to address it now while we have the time to do it properly.

If we wait, then it will become a knee jerk reaction for short term political gain ....  and we all know how well that works in the real world. 

So we need to act now and plan it out so it becomes a win win situation.

Any other way and we run the very real risk of becoming victims of technology.

This is the major platform I am standing on for the Australian Senate and very much want to get involved in making this work for Australia.

Your support can help.

#VotePirate - New idea for a new world

#BasicIncome - the right to choice

Important note.

The vicious attacks on the Al Noor and Linwood Mosques in Christchurch yesterday are 

wholeheartedly condemned by the Pirate Party Australia.

We send our heartfelt condolences to the victims and their families, and to the Muslim communities 

of Australia and New Zealand.

This atrocity will not go unanswered and the Pirate Party will continue to fight to remove far right 

extremists like Fraser Anning and Pauline Hanson from our Parliament.

Part 53 - The new Pirates of the 21st Century

A time to reflect.

Those of you who know, or know of me, know that I will be standing for the Australian Senate in 2019.

Why?

Because as I have become older my interests have changed and with it the reflection of my beliefs have changed as well.

Sounds a little pompous I know but it's true.

With age comes some security when your kids grow up, leave home and have their own lives.

What I found is that now I have more time to look around me as the day to day pressure of a younger age have gone and I am looking at the world differently.

I have always voted Liberal (right leaning in Australia) and looked on Labor (left) as something to be shunned.

In the 21st century though it's all changing.

I am a strong believer in government staying out of business as private industry can do it better and more efficiently but, and it's a big but, government has to be across what's happening and shape the society for the benefit of the people.

Confusing?

Not really.

Industry is there to make money, in most instances it's the beginning and end of the whole process. Unfortunately that's not always in the best interest of the society as a whole or for the individual.

For example, in Australia recently there has been a Banking Royal Commission into financial institutions and that has shown a blatant disregard for not only the consumer but for the law as well.

People have been systematically ripped off by companies who tell you everyday that they are there to help you.

That's just an example of how business can go wrong and most certainly does not apply to all businesses, there are ethical people in all industries.

So why is the 21st century going to change all this?

Businesses have to make money or they cease to be a business very quickly.

So the modern trend, forced by practically is to always look at ways of saving money to increase the bottom line. One way of doing this is to increase the automation of processes.

This is nothing new.

Henry ford use automation and introduced the production line early in the 20th century, and many auto factories today are nearly fully automated.
Computing in all industries have cut back staff and increased production in many areas, particularly in finance.

If your a little older you will remember queueing at the bank to take out money then driving around to various places to pay the bills.
Today we do all our banking and bill paying on the Internet and finding a bank branch (if you have a need to) is now difficult as many have closed.

Automation in industry is growing by the day, robotics and AI will increase production, reduce cost and employ less people to achieve these results than ever before and this trend is accelerating rapidly.

Not going to happen in my lifetime is something that many people believe but they are totally wrong.
I build robots at home for a hobby while working full time.

Automated cars are on the road now and will take over much quicker than you would think.
this in itself will change society further that you can image.

In my state of Western Australia , the road toll figures for last year show the lowest death toll for a year since records began. This all comes down to technology ranging from car safety, ABS, auto braking, adaptive cruise control, seat belts and not least, high tech traffic enforcement technology such as Radar and Lidar.

The point being that technology is an integral part of everyday life. If you don't believe me then try getting through a day without your mobile phone, tablet or Netflix.

So back to the political side of things.
We now have industry producing things faster, cheaper and with less wastage and better quality control, all done with less people.

See the irony here?
less people working means less disposable income and a smaller consumer base with a higher product output.

This is where it gets controversial.
In Australia we have unemployment benefits where people are paid an income while looking for work and have very strict processes in place to ensure that they do look for work to get them off benefits as soon as possible.

In the new age this all gets turned around and we need to look at things very differently.

In the not too distant future unemployment for many people will be the new normal and the stigma associated with it will have to disappear.

One answer is a form of Universal Basic Income  (UBI) where everyone has a guaranteed income regardless of their ability to look for work.

So this is where the old system of politics tends to break down.
We need to encourage industry to automate but we need to provide for people who are affected by it.

To do this we need to change the way that politicians think and get people into office that understand the new world and more importantly, are not afraid of adapting to change.

After all change will be the new constant.

So, this brings me back to the beginning where I am standing for the Australian Senate in 2019 for the Pirate Party Australia and to encourage the adoption of change and adapting our society to take advantage of the new potential that change brings with it.

After all history is all about adapt or die and we need to be ahead of change not playing catch up once it happens because we didn't take the time to think about it.

Like it or not we are on the cusp of the greatest change in human history and we must be prepared to adapt.

Adapt or Die, it's our choice.

@VoteCliveMyers'
#Votepirate
#BasicIncome