Capitalist/Socialist Utopia!

Let's start with the concept of borrowing money we don't have to fund programs which will eventually eliminate up to 47,000 jobs long-term. Surely that will help our economy. Right?

BLS: Occupational Outlook Handbook: Meter Readers, Utilities

Meter reading is one of the fastest-declining occupations, as a result of automated meter reading (AMR) systems that allow meters to be monitored and billed from a central point.

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Meter readers held about 47,000 jobs in 2006.

The Tech Vendors That Will Cash in on the Smart Grid Stimulus Funds

Itron: The largest meter maker, with more than 14 million smart meters under contract, Itron had some significant skin in the stimulus-funded game, including contracts with CenterPoint Energy (which snagged a $200 million award for 2.2 million smart meters), San Diego Gas and Electric ($28.12 million for wireless smart grid network), DTE Energy ($83.83 million for 660,000 smart meters and 300 smart appliances) and City of Glendale Water and Power ($20 million for 84,000 smart meters). As Malcolm Unsworth, Itron’s president and chief executive officer, put it in a release: “The industry has been waiting for this day and these announcements since early in 2009.”

Itron was on CNBC today. Although their production is fully automated (the robotic arms are amazing), the company said they will be hiring 100 employees to help meet the demand of their products. You heard me right. 100 employees will be hired. Itron does indeed have "significant skin in the stimulus-funded game". It isn't human skin though. It's robotic skin.

Itron Commends Department of Energy on Smart Grid Awards

In August of this year Itron announced an additional automated production line at its production facility in West Union, South Carolina. This new production line utilizes advanced next-generation robotic technology that enables quality production of this smart grid equipment. The new automation ensures that Itron can meet expected demand for both current contracts and future awards. Furthermore, in the spirit of the Stimulus objectives outlined by the Obama administration, this location, as well as Itron`s other facilities throughout the United States, continues to create new jobs and economic opportunity for recovery with domestic manufacturing capacity that fully complies with the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act`s "Buy American" requirements.

I'm not suggesting that automation is a bad thing. I'm simply attempting to show the reality of what is going on. The more jobs that are automated and/or outsourced, the fewer jobs will be left. We already saw this in the farming industry.

In science fiction, automation often shows a worker with little to do in a somewhat utopian environment. This is not science fiction though. Workers with little to do these days can't actually afford to buy a house and/or pay down years of accumulated debt. In sharp contrast, they are currently sitting at home collecting unemployment checks at a fraction of what they would normally be paid.

Utopia

Another view that capitalist utopias do not address is the issue of market failure, any more than socialist utopias address the issue of planning failure. Thus a blend of socialism and capitalism is seen by some as the type of economy in a utopia.

We've been combining the very best of capitalist market failure and socialist planning failure for at least a decade so far. Just look at the results.

Jetsons or Lost in Space? You make the call.