"Historically people realising they are facing change have repeatedly come up with theories about the end of employment"
That is true, but when people were revolting against machines there were colonies. "The historical de-industrialisation processes observed in the British colonies such as India are said to be a product of the British rule. The industrial revolution in Britain is followed by a significant decline in the artisan and manufacturing activities in the colonial and semi-colonial regions of the East such as India"
