[redleggedfrog]

Let's remember this, from the last few years, written by numerous major media editorial pages (paraphrasing, of course): "Silicon Valley never tackles the big issues. They just invent frivolous new gadgets which no on really needs, or some new app that shares pictures of cute kittens or is the next social network. They should focus on big picture issues - hunger, housing, crime, etc."

Those are harder to approach and solve, and you need more patience for results. Now we see complaining that the nifty gadgets aren't coming like they used to. Hmm.

[philipov]

Hunger, crime, these are not technological issues solvable by tech companies, unless your idea of a solution involves building a more effective police state. These are political issues our leadership has neither the will nor incentive to solve.

For example, Housing isn't a problem, it's an investment opportunity. The people donating to your campaign wouldn't like it if their investments were pushed down in value.

An app can't fix your economy being dominated by bad actors.

[galieos_ghost]

hunger- Has been mostly solved thanks to GMO increasing crop yields.

crime- Is strongly correlated with poverty, which has been rapidly reduced globally thanks to technological innovation

Housing- Will be solved by tech making remote work viable and thus reducing demand in cities. Automation and some form of income stipend could also allow people to live in more affordable places rather than cities.

Your view of "tech" is pretty stunted if you only think web apps.

[mcphage]

> Will be solved by tech making remote work viable and thus reducing demand in cities

Remote work is viable, and yet the major tech companies are focused on hiring developers in a small number of overcrowded cities (or moving developers that it hires into those cities). I expect no solution to housing or remote work from them.

[amarkov]

Isn't that exactly why we should expect a solution from them? Google knows first-hand why some leaders are opposed to remote work, and stands to make a lot of money if they can overcome it.

[mcphage]

They haven’t shown any interest in doing so; if they are going to, I’d first expect some indications from them that they see it as a problem.

[redial]

> crime- Is strongly correlated with poverty, which has been rapidly reduced globally thanks to technological innovation

Small scale crime might be. White collar crime is adversely correlated, strongly, with poverty. And it sinks entire nations.

[jeffreyrogers]

What nation has been sunk by white collar crime? I'm not disagreeing that it's bad, but I don't think it's that bad.

[sincerely]

Wasn't the global recession caused by white collar crime?