The travel gods have blessed me this afternoon with an extra hour and a half in the Raleigh-Durham terminal.On the leisurely stroll down to the gate, I noticed that RDU's terminal 2 kiosks are all automated. For instance, if you fancy buying the Rosetta Stone software to learn Tagalog or Russian (something to consider if the delay extends beyond 90 minutes), you will do it without interacting with a salesperson.
People tend to blame immigration, off-shoring, and other external processes for the declines in employment and wages, especially for less-skilled workers. However, they overlook how technology and physical capital substitute for workers.
I'm glad that I didn't walk by an automated graduate economic statistics kiosk, but I don't doubt that something like it is on the way.
