Leisure will not be the "default, guaranteed state".
Slums and ghettos with huge masses of devastated ex-middle class left to mostly rot and a much smaller semi-middle-class and extra rich leave in closed guarded communities will be the default.
A leisure-filled society is an inherently stable thing. It's just not a direction we're headed. But perhaps those of us with long-term vision can steer things a little.
After all, those slums aren't a stable thing. They're a civil war waiting to happen.
Survivorship bias. That and (if an American) living in a country with a shortish history (mostly upwards until now).
The sky has fallen tons of times for lots of cultures and even whole empires.
Once there was a Babylon for real and an assorted thriving empire with millions of people. Once the Roman Empire ruled the world. Once Native American Indias lived and roamed their land as they pleased. Once there was a thriving Jewish community in Germany and Europe.
We're talking about "the sky is falling" situations (or, more generally, dire outcomes).
Those can be both external and/or internal.
And the original "sky is falling" metaphor that the parent used also favours outside factors.
You'd like to Think it can't happen to you, maybe even make fun of people who suggest it could happen so you'll feed better. That doesn't mean it won't happen to you anyway.
The startup lesson here is its OK to have your illusions, especially if they're fun or make you feel good, but making decisions based on illusions being true leads to disaster more often than not.