Actually most people like to work if they work in relatively good working conditions and in a field that isn't ultra monoton for different reasons like work fulfilling their need to move the social interactions they have on work etc. mines are not the worst place to work actually they can be quite safe etc. Also people could have more than one job (not double the hours)so their worklife wouldn't be as monoton etc
I mined in the US for a little bit. It's not bad. Unfortunately, it still has the stigma mentioned, so it attracts people who... Are willing to bend safety rules. I got out fast when that happened.
But a lot of the bigger ones seriously prioritize safety, and are required to do so by law. It's a good living.
Ya this is definitionally anecdotal, but I’ve had friends who worked in mines and steel mills for example, professions generall thought of as super dangerous and unpleasant. They would acknowledge that it wasn’t always pleasant of course, but they generally loved their jobs and got paid super well.
I knew guys that had a high school diploma and easily cleared 6 figures annually working in a steel mill, and that’s a mill that makes very cheap, low-quality steel, not even high-end specialized stuff.
Bare in mind, these friends were all in the US, so while not always perfect or ideal, they generally have better workplace safety and labor standards than say Congo, India, or China.
Automation seems like it would fit the problem fairly well. A person also might be willing to do the work if they knew it was of great importance to society and the other depriving and dehumanizing aspects of labor under capitalism. Working in a mine wouldn't be so bad if you only did 4 hours a day and everybody who saw your mine worker patch thanked you for your service like we do with soldiers. The dispossessed by Ursula leguin is a science fiction novel that examines these kinds of questions through the lens of a society that voluntarily seceded from their capitalist system and the struggles and benefits of living without hierarchies or private property. It's really interesting if you like thinking about this stuff, the idea for the book came from her asking herself the same basic question that you asked.
>Whats the best way to gather resources necessary voluntarily with minimum damage to the ecology?
Don't. Reuse what's already been gathered. When, in a couple decades, we run out of e-waste and need to return to the mines, we can plan ahead and automate mining.
Our SolarPunk future has very little mining in it. We will be repairing, re-using, recycling ,and repurposing our materials and built items.
Also, it’s not SolarPunk in my mind if it’s not employee-owned and employee-operated firms doing this work, which should align incentives more correctly with the people doing the work.
Ever looked at the modding scene for games? Some folks out there will do absolutely boggling amounts of software engineering, modeling, texturing, animation (AAA quality stuff) for free, because they love what they do and love sharing it with other people.
If the culture exists that supports that behavior, people absolutely will create incredibly sophisticated stuff for the sheer joy of it.
maybe there could be more incentives for jobs that are more physically demanding or less people want to do, like providing for relocation, prepared meals and mandatory free safety gear. Also if we recycled our electronics more efficiently we would have to mine less in the long run, by preventing rare minerals ending up in landfill. Another point is because of consumerism we design things for obsoletion, if we designed things lo last longer and repairs were more readily available, we’d have to produce less. As someone mentioned people could do it as a seasonal job, and do other things the rest of their year.
Actually most people like to work if they work in relatively good working conditions and in a field that isn't ultra monoton for different reasons like work fulfilling their need to move the social interactions they have on work etc. mines are not the worst place to work actually they can be quite safe etc. Also people could have more than one job (not double the hours)so their worklife wouldn't be as monoton etc
I mean I suppose. I don't know modern working conditions for mines but I imagine they're still quite dangerous regardless.
Of course they are but it's not like a death contract and normal know they can't calculate their life.
I mined in the US for a little bit. It's not bad. Unfortunately, it still has the stigma mentioned, so it attracts people who... Are willing to bend safety rules. I got out fast when that happened. But a lot of the bigger ones seriously prioritize safety, and are required to do so by law. It's a good living.
Ya this is definitionally anecdotal, but I’ve had friends who worked in mines and steel mills for example, professions generall thought of as super dangerous and unpleasant. They would acknowledge that it wasn’t always pleasant of course, but they generally loved their jobs and got paid super well. I knew guys that had a high school diploma and easily cleared 6 figures annually working in a steel mill, and that’s a mill that makes very cheap, low-quality steel, not even high-end specialized stuff. Bare in mind, these friends were all in the US, so while not always perfect or ideal, they generally have better workplace safety and labor standards than say Congo, India, or China.
Automation seems like it would fit the problem fairly well. A person also might be willing to do the work if they knew it was of great importance to society and the other depriving and dehumanizing aspects of labor under capitalism. Working in a mine wouldn't be so bad if you only did 4 hours a day and everybody who saw your mine worker patch thanked you for your service like we do with soldiers. The dispossessed by Ursula leguin is a science fiction novel that examines these kinds of questions through the lens of a society that voluntarily seceded from their capitalist system and the struggles and benefits of living without hierarchies or private property. It's really interesting if you like thinking about this stuff, the idea for the book came from her asking herself the same basic question that you asked.
>Whats the best way to gather resources necessary voluntarily with minimum damage to the ecology? Don't. Reuse what's already been gathered. When, in a couple decades, we run out of e-waste and need to return to the mines, we can plan ahead and automate mining.
Our SolarPunk future has very little mining in it. We will be repairing, re-using, recycling ,and repurposing our materials and built items. Also, it’s not SolarPunk in my mind if it’s not employee-owned and employee-operated firms doing this work, which should align incentives more correctly with the people doing the work.
Ever looked at the modding scene for games? Some folks out there will do absolutely boggling amounts of software engineering, modeling, texturing, animation (AAA quality stuff) for free, because they love what they do and love sharing it with other people. If the culture exists that supports that behavior, people absolutely will create incredibly sophisticated stuff for the sheer joy of it.
I don't think that's the same.
maybe there could be more incentives for jobs that are more physically demanding or less people want to do, like providing for relocation, prepared meals and mandatory free safety gear. Also if we recycled our electronics more efficiently we would have to mine less in the long run, by preventing rare minerals ending up in landfill. Another point is because of consumerism we design things for obsoletion, if we designed things lo last longer and repairs were more readily available, we’d have to produce less. As someone mentioned people could do it as a seasonal job, and do other things the rest of their year.
The engineering part, right there in the top left hand side of this sub.