Transcript
Title text: This is how you all fucking sound
[A smug tech bro wearing a sideways cap, watch, chain around his neck stands in front of a data center by a lake with dead fish. A smoke stack blows pollution into the air]
Tech bro: AI is already here, there’s no going back.
[A smug man in a suit with cigarette in hand stands in a restaurant while two disgruntled diners cough from the smoke]
Suit: Smoking indoors is already here, there’s no going back.
[A smug man in a top hat and suit stands in a factory with two sad and dirty children]
Hat: Child labor is already here, there’s no going back.
[A smug plantation owner stands in front of a field with with two angry slaves]
Plantation owner: The Atlantic Slave trade is already here, there’s no going back.
We already talked about absolutely absolute numbers. More wealth inequality than ever before in history. We already have the first trillionaires coming on line my man. You can't make this shit up, but I am sure people are still in denial.
I will readily admit we simply don't know a lot about recent history let alone ancient history economic numbers. To be honest even primary sources can be contrived as we have seen with the US recently. I can only imagine how historians will have to interpret Trumplethinskin's economic numbers.
I could give you a strong sure saying a general statement like income inequality was worse back in the days of kings. I don't know that though empirically. What I do know empirically is it is the worse now than ever in history and it is going to get even worse in the future.
If you think industrialization made things better for the human condition then I have a bridge to sell you in Brooklyn. What I will say is currently there are a lot more people (probably a billion) from let's say 40 years ago that have access to fresh water and electricity. That is pretty amazing and perhaps some kind of silver lining to a very dark fascist cloud.
As typical of capitalism, if it is small and well regulated it can somewhat equitably distribute resources. This mythical small market capitalism invariably gives way to monopoly due to corporatism and I would argue eventually leads to a hyper capilitistic corporatocracy (aka fascism).
This is purely my opinion but why I bring it up is every single nation is a victim of this. The wealth gap is growing dramatically everywhere, even in a place like China where people thought capitalism could be tamed. China is now pumping out more billionaires per year than the US.
This is not unique to western anglosphere and frankly if you studied history you would not be looking on any nation kindly. Atrocities and genocides are universal, but I will admit the US, in particular, has outdone everyone.
The military industrial complex that sprang forth from it and subsequently spread to the whole world has caused worldwide suffering on an unimaginable scale compared to all of history. Just imagine an industry that constantly has to grow in every country and the only way they grow is through murder. I digress though.
I hate to say it, but anything past hunter and gatherer has been real shitty for humans. I don't think history shows things getting better at all and your rosy outlook is probably because your ancestors were not ruthlessly murdered in the countless human purges throughout history.
You do have a point by some metrics though. Overall violence, war, and even crime have been decreasing. That and with billions of people no longer living in abject poverty, I can see your point and it is very hopeful. if not for a lot of other unfortunate factors I could even agree to it.