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For whom does AI work for?
The Plumber’s Lament
Let’s just automate everything. Perfectly.
When the Automatons came for the assembly line makers I did not fear, for the factory still needed pipes and I kept them running. And the goods it made were cheaper.
When the Automatons defeated the Chess players, and the Go players, I laughed at their game for I don’t play games.
When the Automatons came for the truck drivers I enjoyed the free shipping. And when they came for the taxi drivers I enjoyed that there was less congestion.
When the Automatons came for the clerical staff I did not worry, for management still needed their faucets. And their toilets.
When the Automatons came for the Radiologists I did not worry because their diagnoses were better and kept my health intact. And charged me less.
When the Automatons came for the Writers and the Musicians I did not worry because the music they made was beautiful and it was all tailored just for me.
Today the Automatons showed me they can lay pipes, and told me I may take a deserved rest.
And now I have nothing to do, for the Automatons do everything. Better.
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Acknowledgement: The form of this poem is patterned on the Rev Martin Niemoller’s famous post World War 2 poem. “First they came for…”. Hopefully we don’t see as dark a time, but we cannot be complacent either.
M A Chatterjee revised © Dec 2022
