Unfortunately this concept of robot taxicabs (or driverless cars) is one additional way of eliminating jobs for the lower and working classes. Robots, AI, etc. which all serve the purpose of elimination of jobs, and unfortunately, this isn't a good thing in 2025.
This is an ancient process. Mechanical tillers/seeders/harvesters have torn through agriculture. I actually know a farmer; his operation is him driving a combine with his dog in the cab to make cute videos. The occupation of "farmhand" disappeared long ago. The only thing standing athwart fully automated passenger and freight rail is labor union activism.
AI is going to do the same thing with white collar. Remember how many people used to be "investment analysts" until Wall Street figured out you can just write an algorithm for all that crap? You need to be waving a STEM PhD around to get into investment analytics these days.
You'd be a fool to get a pharmacy degree at this point. AI is tearing through law as well; the positions of "paralegal" and "junior associate" are disappearing. The process of mechanization and automation of jobs for "10th grade education and a strong back" is creeping ever upward. I don't know how this ends.
They may have just intercepted a random Waymo that was tooling/waiting around.
One advantage (for a vandal) about Waymos is they will stop if you get in front of them, and they are kinda slow to maneuver around unexpected obstacles.
Even worse (for Waymo) / better (for vandals) is that the Waymo algo will automatically send another car when the first one is disabled.
On a serious note, I’d like to know your plan on how we actually get to deport the 12-20M illegal immigrant population?
Trump and all GOP admins simply don’t care about this and are incapable of having the organizational capability of mass deportations of millions in 4-8 years. There isn’t even mandatory e-verify in the Big Beautiful Bill. Trump is actually incompetent and not going to advance deportations in any meaningful way.
That’s why I’m in favor of self-deportations + mandatory e-verify the way Romney envisioned
ICE raids all over LA are designed to encourage self-deportation. "I'm not a gangster, why are they going after us normals and honor students?" No one should feel safe. Do you think mandatory e-verify could ever get 60 votes in the Senate or through years of litigation?
You are more right than the above chap, but there is still no reason to not try the Everify/SAFE route. Since all those aliens/H1Bs are here for the gibs, it would select the "Banania-tier" immigrant in two years.
> ICE raids all over LA are designed to encourage self-deportation. "I'm not a gangster, why are they going after us normals and honor students?"
Meanwhile most of the gangsters are going to be still around, because deporting them involves going into tough neighborhoods where you might get shot at.
This is called anarcho-tyranny and it should not be encouraged.
The protests seem like a collection of disaffected people. From photos, I've seen Luigi hats (the guy who killed the healthcare CEO), trans people, gangbanger types. It's a loser party and everyone is invited. They don't seem to have coherent ideals besides "my life sucks and it's your fault." The LA protests are also sharing the news with the Gaza flotilla. The flotilla attracted Thunberg, with her bloodhound nose for publicity, and various other losers. I watched some videos taken by people on the boats: the boats seem to be full of the kind of people who might expound at length about crystals or why mushrooms will save the world. There's just a lot of unstable people out there these days.
Nice try equating the moral purpose of the Gaza flotilla with these LA riots. No one on the left buys it and fewer and fewer on the right do either.
Greta has turned out to be in the mold of Lady Di: dismissed as an airhead, used her public image to draw attention to a moral atrocity. Gaza for Greta, land mines for Lady Di. Diana could have done the usual, fitness or literacy. Greta could have done “climate change and assorted Bono adjacent nonsense” forever. Instead they stepped up.
Never underestimate the left as merely unhinged eccentrics. In the midst of these crowds are the same psychopaths that committed most of the crimes of the 20th century. Greta Thunberg comes across as someone you would never want to give power.
The LA riots aren’t about anything, they’re just riots and sometimes riots are fun. I don’t think the rioters are afraid of being shot or even arrested for any length of time. They have the past mostly peaceful riots/protests as an example of the feckless behavior of the media and the government. Whoopee, let’s burn it down!!!
Anyhow Steve I hope your neighborhood is OK. I guess there's some benefits to being cast out of polite society: at least none of these people know where you live.
I recently befriended a woman who has a senior transport company in Ohio. This will be another line of work eliminated by robotics. Then again, I think seniors will be pretty resistant to getting in a car with no driver.
Oh I missed this post. Yes, this is what I thought would happen to waymos, or something like it.
Driving is a highly social activity. Robots don't stand much of a chance out there. We don't think about it much, but driving is a human behavior. Cars are an extension of their drivers. I just don't see how driverless cars will get any respect.
Bryan Caplan clutches his head and rocks back and forth every time he sees one of these images. “Stop making me look wrong guys please I am begging you”
I grew up in the paradise of San Diego in the 60's and 70's, graduating from UCLA in 1981. I've raised my family in Texas for the past 30 years and now find it hard to even visit California. A big turning point was the passage (59%-41%) of Prop 187 in 1994. The bill required proof of citizenship in order to attend school, gain employment and access social services, etc. Although it passed by a clear and decisive majority, it was declared unconstitutional by a liberal judge and thrown out. The State appealed, but in 1999 under Dem governor Gray Davis the appeal was dropped. The Dems realized their path to power and a one-party state was through unfettered illegal immigration, and now I doubt there are enough sensible voters to turn things around. I'm afraid I'm pessimistic about my home state's future as more productive people continue to leave for other states. As Trump might tweet - "SAD"
Unfortunately this concept of robot taxicabs (or driverless cars) is one additional way of eliminating jobs for the lower and working classes. Robots, AI, etc. which all serve the purpose of elimination of jobs, and unfortunately, this isn't a good thing in 2025.
This is an ancient process. Mechanical tillers/seeders/harvesters have torn through agriculture. I actually know a farmer; his operation is him driving a combine with his dog in the cab to make cute videos. The occupation of "farmhand" disappeared long ago. The only thing standing athwart fully automated passenger and freight rail is labor union activism.
AI is going to do the same thing with white collar. Remember how many people used to be "investment analysts" until Wall Street figured out you can just write an algorithm for all that crap? You need to be waving a STEM PhD around to get into investment analytics these days.
You'd be a fool to get a pharmacy degree at this point. AI is tearing through law as well; the positions of "paralegal" and "junior associate" are disappearing. The process of mechanization and automation of jobs for "10th grade education and a strong back" is creeping ever upward. I don't know how this ends.
It ends with mostly peaceful protests in the major cities.
Bit of bad luck if you chose the ride-share option
Robot Rights are Human Rights! #waymomassacre
"As He died to free men's souls/we shall die to make AIs free"
Tomorrow at LA Improv, "Waymo? More like Flamo, amirite?!"
You have a gift, sir!
If they summoned the cabs via app, aren’t there electronic records?
Burner phones and stolen credit cards?
Do we know they summoned the Waymos?
They may have just intercepted a random Waymo that was tooling/waiting around.
One advantage (for a vandal) about Waymos is they will stop if you get in front of them, and they are kinda slow to maneuver around unexpected obstacles.
Even worse (for Waymo) / better (for vandals) is that the Waymo algo will automatically send another car when the first one is disabled.
On a serious note, I’d like to know your plan on how we actually get to deport the 12-20M illegal immigrant population?
Trump and all GOP admins simply don’t care about this and are incapable of having the organizational capability of mass deportations of millions in 4-8 years. There isn’t even mandatory e-verify in the Big Beautiful Bill. Trump is actually incompetent and not going to advance deportations in any meaningful way.
That’s why I’m in favor of self-deportations + mandatory e-verify the way Romney envisioned
ICE raids all over LA are designed to encourage self-deportation. "I'm not a gangster, why are they going after us normals and honor students?" No one should feel safe. Do you think mandatory e-verify could ever get 60 votes in the Senate or through years of litigation?
You are more right than the above chap, but there is still no reason to not try the Everify/SAFE route. Since all those aliens/H1Bs are here for the gibs, it would select the "Banania-tier" immigrant in two years.
> ICE raids all over LA are designed to encourage self-deportation. "I'm not a gangster, why are they going after us normals and honor students?"
Meanwhile most of the gangsters are going to be still around, because deporting them involves going into tough neighborhoods where you might get shot at.
This is called anarcho-tyranny and it should not be encouraged.
The protests seem like a collection of disaffected people. From photos, I've seen Luigi hats (the guy who killed the healthcare CEO), trans people, gangbanger types. It's a loser party and everyone is invited. They don't seem to have coherent ideals besides "my life sucks and it's your fault." The LA protests are also sharing the news with the Gaza flotilla. The flotilla attracted Thunberg, with her bloodhound nose for publicity, and various other losers. I watched some videos taken by people on the boats: the boats seem to be full of the kind of people who might expound at length about crystals or why mushrooms will save the world. There's just a lot of unstable people out there these days.
You just described much of the liberal crowd - disaffected.
Nice try equating the moral purpose of the Gaza flotilla with these LA riots. No one on the left buys it and fewer and fewer on the right do either.
Greta has turned out to be in the mold of Lady Di: dismissed as an airhead, used her public image to draw attention to a moral atrocity. Gaza for Greta, land mines for Lady Di. Diana could have done the usual, fitness or literacy. Greta could have done “climate change and assorted Bono adjacent nonsense” forever. Instead they stepped up.
Never underestimate the left as merely unhinged eccentrics. In the midst of these crowds are the same psychopaths that committed most of the crimes of the 20th century. Greta Thunberg comes across as someone you would never want to give power.
The LA riots aren’t about anything, they’re just riots and sometimes riots are fun. I don’t think the rioters are afraid of being shot or even arrested for any length of time. They have the past mostly peaceful riots/protests as an example of the feckless behavior of the media and the government. Whoopee, let’s burn it down!!!
Do you think they're getting paid to do it?
Some are paid.
Many are pawns of the paid.
Others are just crazy randos.
https://www.unz.com/isteve/do-antifa-tend-to-be-quite-ugly/#comment-3936626
Anyhow Steve I hope your neighborhood is OK. I guess there's some benefits to being cast out of polite society: at least none of these people know where you live.
Yes, may God and all His angels protect Steve, and I'm not being a wiseass!
It's fine.
One of the lessons of 2020 is that looting houses is out of fashion.
I recently befriended a woman who has a senior transport company in Ohio. This will be another line of work eliminated by robotics. Then again, I think seniors will be pretty resistant to getting in a car with no driver.
Or helped into a car by a machine.
This is Waymo that I can process....
What’s the likelihood that immigration-related riots spread across several cities?
A summer of Floyd variant? Mostly peaceful, of course, except for the fire and rocks and guns stuff.
I suppose that's why Newsom and Bass are angry about the federal troops. Local authorities' complicity is required for a proper summer of George show.
Oh I missed this post. Yes, this is what I thought would happen to waymos, or something like it.
Driving is a highly social activity. Robots don't stand much of a chance out there. We don't think about it much, but driving is a human behavior. Cars are an extension of their drivers. I just don't see how driverless cars will get any respect.
Sending letters used to be a highly social activity, too.
Bryan Caplan clutches his head and rocks back and forth every time he sees one of these images. “Stop making me look wrong guys please I am begging you”
Maybe Google should just put Mexican license plates on the Waymos.
Awesome.
Perhaps a horn that plays “La Cucuracha.”
I grew up in the paradise of San Diego in the 60's and 70's, graduating from UCLA in 1981. I've raised my family in Texas for the past 30 years and now find it hard to even visit California. A big turning point was the passage (59%-41%) of Prop 187 in 1994. The bill required proof of citizenship in order to attend school, gain employment and access social services, etc. Although it passed by a clear and decisive majority, it was declared unconstitutional by a liberal judge and thrown out. The State appealed, but in 1999 under Dem governor Gray Davis the appeal was dropped. The Dems realized their path to power and a one-party state was through unfettered illegal immigration, and now I doubt there are enough sensible voters to turn things around. I'm afraid I'm pessimistic about my home state's future as more productive people continue to leave for other states. As Trump might tweet - "SAD"