Jonathan walked for several hours without a glimpse of any signof life. Suddenly, something moved in the thicket and a smallanimal with a yellow-striped tail ?ashed down a barely visible track. “A cat,” thought Jonathan. “Maybe it will lead me to some people?”
He dived through the thick foliage.Just as he lost sight of the beach and was deep in the jungle,he heard a sharp scream. He stopped, cocked his head, and tried to locate the source of the sound. Directly ahead, he heard another shrill cry for help. Pushing up an incline and through a mass of branches and vines, he clawed his way forward and stumbled ontoa wider path.As he rounded a sharp bend in the trail, Jonathan ran full tilt into the side of a burly man. “Out of my way, chump!” bellowed the man, brushing him aside like a gnat. Dazed, Jonathan looked up and saw two men dragging a young woman, kicking and yelling, down the trail. By the time he caught his breath, the trio had disappeared. Certain that he couldn’t free the woman alone, Jonathan ran back upthe trail looking for help.A clearing opened and he saw a group of people gathered arounda big tree – beating it with sticks. Jonathan ran up and grabbed the arm of a man who was obviously the supervisor. “Please sir, help!” gasped Jonathan. “Two men have captured a woman and she needshelp!”
“Don’t be alarmed,” the man said gruf?y. “She’s under arrest.
Forget her and move along, we’ve got work to do.”
“Arrest?” said Jonathan, still huffing. “She didn’t look like, uh,like a criminal.” Jonathan wondered, if she was guilty, why did she cry so desperately for help? “Pardon me, sir, but what was hercrime?”
“Huh?” snorted the man with irritation. “Well, if you must know,she threatened the jobs of everyone working here.”
“She threatened people’s jobs? How did she do that?” askedJonathan.
Glaring down at his ignorant questioner, the supervisor motionedfor Jonathan to come over to a tree where workers busily pounded away at the trunk. Proudly, he said, “We are tree workers. We knock down trees for wood by beating them with these sticks. Sometimes a hundred people, working round-the-clock, can knock down a good-sized tree in less than a month.” The man pursed his lips and carefully brushed a speck of dirt from the sleeve of his handsomelycut coat.
He continued, “That Drawbaugh woman came to work thismorning with a sharp piece of metal attached to the end of her stick. She cut down a tree in less than an hour – all by herself! Think of it! Such an outrageous threat to our traditional employment had tobe stopped.”
Jonathan’s eyes widened, aghast to hear that this woman waspunished for her creativity. Back home, everyone used axes and saws for cutting trees. That’s how he got the wood for his own boat. “But her invention,” exclaimed Jonathan, “allows people of all sizes and strengths to cut down trees. Won’t that make it faster andcheaper to get wood and make things?”
“What do you mean?” the man said angrily. “How could anyoneencourage an idea like that? This noble work can’t be done by anyweakling who comes along with some new idea.”
“But sir,” said Jonathan, trying not to offend, “these good treeworkers have talented hands and brains. They could use the time saved from knocking down trees to do other things. They couldmake tables, cabinets, boats, or even houses!”
“Listen, you,” the man said with a menacing look, “the purposeof work is to have full and secure employment – not new products.” The tone of his voice turned ugly. “You sound like some kind of troublemaker. Anyone who supports that infernal woman is trouble.Where are you from?”
Jonathan replied anxiously, “I don’t even know Miss Drawbaughand I don’t mean any trouble, sir. I’m sure you’re right. Well, I must be going.” With that, Jonathan turned back the way he came, hurrying down the path. His first encounter with the people of theisland left him feeling very nervous.
Brainstorming
What is the purpose of work?
Are labour-saving innovations good or bad?
Why?
Who is affected?
How can such innovations be stopped?
What are some examples of this behaviour?
Is it bad for people to change the kind of
work they do?
What ethical issues are involved with the use
of force?
Commentary
One of the myths about productivity is thatlabour saving machinery, computers, and robots, cause unemployment and poverty. This theory appears plausible only because the jobs that are lost are seen, but those that are created by the new inventions are not yet seen. Without the freedom to innovate and earn a profit, there would have been no progress. Imagine how we would be living without the innovation of thewheel, or, as in this chapter, the axe.The reason for this confusion about labour-saving automation is that fewer workers are required when new machinery produces productX.
People forget that the money saved onthe wages of redundant workers is used by consumers to purchase more of product X, Y, and Z at lower prices. Workers who are taught to use these new machines, and the manufacturers of the new machines, all have greater incomes topurchase more products at lower prices.To begin with, there may be temporaryunemployment in certain sectors as consumers, producers, and workers adjust to the new demand. Many more workers are eventually employed ina wider range of employment opportunities thatuse a greater diversity of talents.
Although some people will be upset bychange, change is the price of progress foreveryone’s higher standard of living.
To know more about the book:http://www.jonathangullible.com/
Commentary by Janette Elridge
You may purchase the print edition of this book fromThe Liberty Institute, New Delhi.
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