This was originally posted in a NY Tech forum and spawned a huge debate. I am re-posting here with permission from the author, Ed Potter. Would love to hear your thoughts on the topic!

=================================================

My class focused on Disruptive Technologies AKA New and Emerging Trends in the new technology landscape, so I think kind of on topic for this list. It’s Monday after all. 🙂

AKA: Or everything you learned last week is obsolete. Now what?

Reaction Paper, due next week. 10% of your final grade.

Today’s readings:

>>>>>

New buzz word: HYPER-LOCAL :-)))))

The changes are happening in the world now at light speed. Get a worker for .22 cents an hour in Cambodia. And they can run computers, turn on laser cutters and weave suits. For .22 cents an hour. If you are a USA based manufacturing company you are FLEEING to Asia. And no one is stopping you. No one. The machines have won.

A fifth grader with an iPad now has more computing power then the CEO of Goldman Sachs. No one gets that yet. It’s called “The Cloud”

The Information Technology curriculum being prepared for NYC school kids is an unmitigated disaster. But no one gives a **** [IMHO].

Required Readings:
Industries Find Surging Profits in Deeper Cuts Harley has warned union employees at its Milwaukee factory that it would move production elsewhere in the United States if they did not agree to more flexible work rules and tens of millions in cost-saving measures.
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/26/business/economy/26earnings.html?_r=1&ref=business

And this one 2:
The reality is that no matter how smart, how strong, how educated or how hard working American workers are, they just cannot compete with people who are desperate to put in 10 to 12 hour days at less than a dollar an hour on the other side of the world. After all, what corporation in their right mind is going to pay an American worker 10 times more (plus benefits) to do the same job?

The world is fundamentally changing. Wealth and power are rapidly becoming concentrated at the top and the big global corporations are making massive amounts of money. Meanwhile, the American middle class is being systematically wiped out of existence as U.S. workers are slowly being merged into the new “global” labor pool.
http://finance.yahoo.com/tech-ticker/the-u.s.-middle-class-is-being-wiped-out-here%27s-the-stats-to-prove-it-520657.html?tickers=^DJI,^GSPC,SPY,MCD,WMT,XRT,DIA

And how’s your Mandarin coming along? You’ll need that. For sure. 🙂

And for extra credit? Compress your reaction paper to 140 characters. I’ll take it as a twit.

🙂 e!

=================================================

Agree or disagree? Post your thoughts below!