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RFID ... create a tiny number of jobs ... The RFID chips (which are already being manufactured in Asian countries), RFID scanners (also manufactured offshore), and the database software to tie it all together (currently US dominated, but ripe for outsourcing).

Bzzzzzt!

Overly broad, inaccurate portrayl, non-reflective of the reality of the players, the activity in this field ...

1) RFID Company Sites on the Web

2) VCs Are Writing Checks Again

VCs Are Writing Checks Again

Venture capital spending increased in the second quarter, and that's good news for the RFID industry and end users.
Aug. 11, 2003 - Hidden among all the bad news about the continued bloodshed in Iraq, the terrorist bombing in Jakarta and the supposed end of privacy at the hands of RFID, there was some bright news for the RFID industry and end users last week.
In the second quarter, venture capital funding in the United States grew quarter-on-quarter for the first time in more than three years.
And 62 percent of the 442 deals involved IT startups.
MORE - see link above

You obviously missed my point. Will RFID create jobs for some engineers? Yes, a few thousand hardware engineers with relevant experience will get jobs designing RFID hardware until the industry matures (5-10 years). Will some people make a lot of money on RFID? Absolutely. I have a large pile of cash standing by to invest in these RFID startups as they go public, and you'd be dumb not to do the same. RFID technology will become ubiquitous over the next decade, with transponders built into everything from cereal boxes, to cars, to underwear. With that kind of market potential, the profits will be enormous. That's why the VC's are investing.

But we're not talking about VC's, investors, or hardware engineers with decades of experience in miniaturization or nano here (the only ones who will get the new jobs). We're talking about AVERAGE people...the kind that make up 99% of our population. They will see some people get rich, and some others make a lot of money, but RFID won't directly impact their lives in many ways. There will be no new manufacturing jobs in the US for RFID technologies, very few service jobs (RFID is a disposable technology...there's nothing to fix), and will result in a net reduction in jobs as checkers are obsoleted by this technology. RFID is a great technology, but it's no panacea for our current job woes. Realistically, it won't even make a dent.