Tesla factory worker calls for a union: “We need to stand up for ourselves”

Re:Tesla factory worker calls for a union: “We need to stand... by Dylan16807 on Thursday February 09, 2017 @03:44PM (#13610779)

From a strictly utilitarian point of view, we could go with "because it's impossible". Enslaving one group would only make things slightly easier for everyone else. In an alternate universe where we actually could solve huge problems by enslaving Belgium for three years then it might be worth it. I might even volunteer to help do the work.

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Re:Tesla factory worker calls for a union: “We need to stand... by guard-of-terra on Thursday February 09, 2017 @03:51PM (#13610838)

Saving the world by exploiting Tesla factory workers seems equally impossible.

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Re:Tesla factory worker calls for a union: “We need to stand... by Dylan16807 on Thursday February 09, 2017 @04:02PM (#13610948)

Yes, that's true, it's very unlikely it helps Tesla much in the first place. But if it could be done it would at least be worth having a discussion about the pros and cons.

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Re:Tesla factory worker calls for a union: “We need to stand... by guard-of-terra on Thursday February 09, 2017 @06:21PM (#13611985)

I think the solution here is Human Rights and also Immanuel Kant's Categorical Imperative.

You can't use people as slaves unless situation is so that everybody has to become slave. Also, you can't use people as a tool (without their consent).

There's not much to discuss. We've been there already with Hitler's Work Camps and Stalin's GULAG Camps.

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Re:Tesla factory worker calls for a union: “We need to stand... by Dylan16807 on Thursday February 09, 2017 @06:51PM (#13612134)

> You can't use people as slaves unless situation is so that everybody has to become slave. Also, you can't use people as a tool (without their consent).

> There's not much to discuss.

Since it's just an unrealistic though experiment, I wouldn't dismiss out of hand the idea of "enslaving" everyone for a short time for some kind of amazing outcome.

> We've been there already with Hitler's Work Camps and Stalin's GULAG Camps.

Ha. No. Neither of those gave enormous benefits to the world. And they killed people, not just put them through unpleasant working conditions. Completely noncomparable.

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Re:Tesla factory worker calls for a union: “We need to stand... by guard-of-terra on Thursday February 09, 2017 @07:57PM (#13612477)

Well, Stalin used GULAG to dig river channels (Moscow channel for example), design planes and rockets. He just replaced HR department with arrest squads.

One can argue he had quite similar result in mind to the proposed electric-vechicle-enabling indentured servitude.

I don't think it would be excusable even if he avoided killing people while defaulting to raping and beating the crap out of them.

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