[asdf6677]

The Industrial Revolution and its consequences have been a disaster for the human race. They have greatly increased the life-expectancy of those of us who live in “advanced” countries, but they have destabilized society, have made life unfulfilling, have subjected human beings to indignities, have led to widespread psychological suffering (in the Third World to physical suffering as well) and have inflicted severe damage on the natural world. The continued development of technology will worsen the situation. It will certainly subject human beings to greater indignities and inflict greater damage on the natural world, it will probably lead to greater social disruption and psychological suffering, and it may lead to increased physical suffering even in “advanced” countries.

[jacquesm]

I'm with you in part, but I think it would be good to try to be fair: life as it was before the industrial revolution wasn't exactly paradise either. The industrial revolution solved some problems and replaced them with far larger ones. And for those far larger ones we don't have solutions, even after the thing has run for a couple of hundred years the problems are still increasing. And coupled with runaway economic systems, massive imbalance in the world with respect to where the benefits landed we don't look particularly good when it comes to the historical record of such revolutions.

[CyberDildonics]

Not much is stopping you from living in a log cabin in the woods.

[asdf6677]

The government will reclaim the land unless I pay for it with money I make from the system. It’s not possible to opt out anymore. They stole the land too but my guns are smaller.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/north/matthew-clarke-youtube-...

[CyberDildonics]

You could work at a job and then buy land outside a city, thus beating the system. This is something other people have done.

[mahogany]

You still need to pay property tax in perpetuity (in the US at least). Taxes can only be paid with USD aka “system money”, so you’re not really outside of the system in this situation. Plus there is eminent domain.

The only way to avoid needing system money would be to live on national land for free, but then you cannot have a permanent dwelling like a cabin.

[jacquesm]

Not a chance of that around here. And with any solution you have to ask yourself: does it scale? What if the current population of the earth would want to live in a log cabin in the woods? The woods would no longer be the woods.

[CyberDildonics]

you have to ask yourself: does it scale?

You don't have to ask yourself that because almost no one actually agrees with this person that the 'industrial revolution had disastrous effects on the human race'. They don't even believe it.

What if the current population of the earth would want to live in a log cabin in the woods?

They don't and no one said anything about that.

The woods would no longer be the woods.

That's what we have now because that's what people want.

[mahogany]

There is not a dichotomy between a post-Industrial Revolution society and living in the woods.