This is a good point. Technology replaces labor with capital. I remember reading controversy over the stimulus program, that hundreds of thousands of dollars were spent for every job created. Those people would have been much better off if the money went directly to them, instead of indirectly through jobs programs. But that's not politically popular (with the right.)

Alternatively the government could subsidize wages. Agree to pay x% of the wages for certain industries. Which is basically what we already do extensively with tax breaks for companies that create jobs. But that's also not politically popular (with the left.)

As automation replaces more and more of the unskilled workforce, we should just accept it and adopt a basic income.

Today's ditch digging is done with emacs and vim, building useless CRUD apps

You need to use shovels in quite a few scenarios, specifically when you're working around existing infrastructure

Welp I guess that yields the whole point moot.

Good.

There remains a hell of a lot of fiber needs laying.