Thursday, December 05, 2019
Grumpy
Reviewing yesterday's thought that labor unions were banks for human capital. They improved skills through training and experience (interest); they protected skills from low-priced competition and theft (vaults); and they made sure the skills were employed to create real value (investment).
The Soviet system continued this respect for human capital long after it was lost in the Soros world. Free training that emphasized skills; no offshoring of industries; and patents that recognized innovation instead of killing it.
= = = = =
I got into a grumpy mood today, comparing things that I shouldn't try to compare. I can't really complain; my creative work is recognized in a small way and paid in a small way. Not entirely futile. The work itself is tremendously satisfying.
Still, it's annoying to see what gets MASSIVELY recognized and paid. Pure destruction. Raw sin and crime. Killing and torturing millions of people. Obliterating the universe by making black holes. Using science to serve bankers and intel agencies.
And specifically on this topic, the Github Syndrome. Constant changes in technology, always expanding the required universe of compatibility. Each increase in global compatibility knocks out huge pieces of skill. It's not just a question of changing a presentation to fit the new tech; some forms of presentation that were possible in the Windows universe are IMPOSSIBLE in the HTML/SVG/CSS universe. Even if you can make it work for one combination of browsers and iPhones, it won't work for some other.
Just as globalized language grinds off all fine points of metaphor and idiom, globalized tech grinds off the fine points of interactive presentation.
Big question: If labor unions had survived into the era of software, would they have improved things? Would a union manage to slow down the Githubbers?
Labels: Asked and unanswerable, Natural law = Soviet law, skill-estate
¶ 2:33 PM
