Since I hit my mid 60s, “AHA Thoughts” have dawned on me, out of nowhere. This one popped up when I was making out my goals re adding to my assets as I age. In a former post, I mentioned that we made up “money” – so we wouldn’t have to bring something we made to someone and hope they’d want it, in exchange for something they made. First we had pebbles, then coins and now there are stocks and bonds and we even consider credit as something we can use in bargaining.

I’ll risk sounding like Pollyanna and say that, I betcha in several hundred years, machines will be doing all the work. The only “work” humans will have will be running and building the machines and, maybe, the machines will even be able to build themselves. I don’t think this will stop humans from contributing their talent. I usually hear that if there were no pay – people wouldn’t work. They work for the money. I think that’s because we’re taught that now. I have a feeling everyone would want to get in there and contribute his/her talent and I dare say everyone would put in all the effort they could for the joy of making their contribution, if they knew that their food, etc. didn’t depend on the “work.” Wouldn’t you want to contribute?

There’s enough on Earth. Everyone would have food, clothing, etc. People who love agricultural science could handle the food. People who love clothing would handle clothes, etc. I think knowing that their existence didn’t depend on their “work” would inspire humans to work harder and contribute at their highest level – doing what it is they love to do. Certain people who are on welfare now might well contribute their talents, if they didn’t attach “having to work” to the possibility of eating and having shelter. They’d have those things. I’m not a psychiatrist, but I dare say that I think there would be fewer psychological holdbacks.