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Politics : Libertarian Discussion Forum -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Road Walker who wrote (9896)	7/6/2014 2:57:12 PM
From: TimF	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 13056

They have to employ people. Irrelevant. That they have to do something helpful doesn't meant it isn't helpful. I didn't say it was altruistic, only that it was beneficial, and that specifically it reduced the amount of support the government provides. Walmart also helps (again for their own benefit, its not charity) help to relatively poor people by providing affordable goods to them.

To: Road Walker who wrote (9896)	7/7/2014 8:26:44 PM
From: i-node	1 Recommendation Recommended By TimF Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 13056

>> They have to employ people. They have to employ SOME people. They do not have to employ as many as they do, and they are well positioned to take advantage of automation as the cost of hiring continues to increase. If you think businesses aren't finding ways to cut labor costs you're not looking around. It is no coincidence that in the last year large retailers like Chilis and Applebees and McDs have moved toward IT-based reductions in labor costs. And it is only the beginning. One can argue, "Well, that would have happened anyway." And it would. But right now, what is needed is as much time as possible to allow people to retrain and become useful in fields that will carry them forward. The last five years has done the opposite. The lack of clarity and regulatory predictability has caused business to move forward plans that otherwise would have been delayed. Even if for a few months or a couple years, it matters. Seriously. Go to a Chilis and notice that since they've installed table-top kiosks, the number of servers has been cut in half. This is a trend that is going to continue and it has been accelerated and exacerbated by the increased cost of hiring.