This is a the last chapter of a little story following the situation described in my post about AI and Jobs
Previous chapter:- The Reckoning
Two years later, the effect of climate change are becoming more severe, this perversely has turned out well for Pauls and Vinces business. Simply put, damage caused by extreme weather events necessitates repair work.
Protest marches, many companies refusing to work for politicians, and riots have resulted in a new coalition government who are focussed on addressing climate change.
Pauls and Vinces taxes are still going up but not as much since the government against huge opposition from the big companies, particularly thos in the AI sector, introduced a big one-off wealth tax to fund the newly formed Disaster Management Force (DMF). It is tasked with tackling the effects of severe storms, floods, wildfires, droughts, and heat waves which have become more frequent due to climate change.
Alan gave up hacking when his “leader” asked him to get in a hospital computer. He made little money from it personally anyway. The DMF have been recruiting extensively, and Alan has been with them for a year, and is actually rising through the ranks. He spends some of his time up to his waist in flood water, some wrestling with a fire hose, some as a paramedic, and some on a computer working with the AI to manage the whole operation. Much to his surprise, he is not sure what he likes best.
Two years further on, Paul and Vince continue to do well, but Vince has had to move his entire business to a new location as his old location is now an almost permanent lake.
Alans work takes him all over the world since the DMF became part of the International Disaster Management Force (IDMF). It is a highly tuned operation. AI systems use satellite imaging to monitor the entire planet and handle the logistics needed to address the issues. Predictions indicate that climate change is slowing, but not reversing. The present situation is expected to last for a minimum of another 50 years. The one-off wealth tax now appears to be an ongoing event, but it really affects the most wealthy two percent of the population. The UK followed the European countries in setting up draconian laws to stop anyone emigrating and taking their wealth with them. The USA has also followed suit.
The IDMF is now the largest “army” on the planet.
