Interesting. Destroying mechanical looms is not a practical solution of course, but in theory yes: The benefit to so many poor people would be so great that it could be worth having an inefficient textile industry. There are probably less costly ways of helping the poor, but it would be better than the status quo.

I've thought this for years.

Automation makes people redundant and you end up with people who consume but produce nothing. Those people are labelled as 'poor' as they are given minimal cash to survive on as they have no value to add to mainstream society.

If you increase automation and drop the retirement age in most countries to shorten the workforce and allow people to exist comfortably after retirement, I reckon you'd solve both ends of the problem i.e. less "poor" people and more people doing something constructive.

Smashing looms however doesn't do anything other than commit more people to slavery and poverty.

It would probably be preferable to subsidize education than to subsidize retirement.

I think robots are great, but I'd prefer if China had time to transition to an economy less dependent on exports, as they are trying to do.