I often daydream about the future of products. I like to imagine what it would be like without fresh fruit, or water so scarce it's illegal to water the lawn. I also imagine the model's counterpart, that some things have become very easy to produce. The article refers to digital content, which can be infinitely reproduced without burden.
But I like to wonder, are there physical goods that are close to this digital model - are there some things we can make so much of, that we'll never have to really worry about their production? More to the point, are we entering a period where the baseline is that a person who refuses to work can literally not starve to death because of abundance? If most jobs eventually turn to digital production that can be so easily shared like the article suggests, could we ever see a planet where there are simply not enough jobs and that working is optional since you could subsist on free products?
But I like to wonder, are there physical goods that are close to this digital model - are there some things we can make so much of, that we'll never have to really worry about their production? More to the point, are we entering a period where the baseline is that a person who refuses to work can literally not starve to death because of abundance? If most jobs eventually turn to digital production that can be so easily shared like the article suggests, could we ever see a planet where there are simply not enough jobs and that working is optional since you could subsist on free products?