[JoeSchem]

I mean, as long as we're writing science fiction here

What science fiction? The past two centuries have seen living standards increase by 2.5% average per year, or ten-fold per century.

It's science fact that the world is getting better thanks to technology -- more food, more health, higher living standards. The only thing that can stop progress is a political ideology which hates business and technology and embraces political solutions (ie, more government regulation and repression and a bigger welfare state) as the mechanism for change.

That kind of 'political science fiction' was practiced in the Soviet Union, and it's history, man. Now, stop standing in the way of progress!

[B-Chan]

I notice you didn't address the actual point I made: in a world where machines can produce an abundance of goods without need for human labor, what incentive will the controllers of these miracle machines have to keep the rest of humanity alive?