THE FUTURE OF MONEY Bernard A. Lietaer - library.uniteddiversity ...

Economic consequences
The International Metalworkers Federation in Geneva forecasts that
'within 30 years, as little as 2 percent of the world's current labour
force will be needed to produce all the goods necessary for total
demand'. The interesting question is, of course, what will the other
98% do?
Some may argue, so what, jobs are disappearing? It has all
happened before:
· in 1800 over 80% of the US population was occupied in farming;
· by 1900 this was down to 48%;
· by 1950 to 11%,
· and now to an insignificant 2.9%.
And that 2.9% not only feeds the entire nation better than the 80%
ever did, but it feeds a good deal of the rest of the world as well! Al
these people who moved out of farming found jobs in the cities in
industry, the trades, and services.
This is, of course, true. However, there is a structural difference
when we are dealing with an Information Revolution instead of an
Industrial Revolution. A farmer became a stagecoach maker, and the
stagecoach maker could learn how to make automobiles. Every time
he changed jobs he also earned more money than before. But what is
a no-longer-needed information handler to do, flip hamburgers (see
sidebar)?
This time we may well remain stuck between a rock and a hard
place. Because while it makes sense for each corporation to improve
its competitiveness by downsizing - this time all the pieces just don't
add up. When Henry Ford decided to make a car that was so cheap