NYT Seems to Think Productivity Growth Is New

That is the impression that readers may take away from an article discussing the potential for self-driving trucks. The article notes that 3 million people work as truckers and warns of the risk that these people face from displacement due to this technology.

In fact, technology has always displaced workers from jobs. This is the basis for higher wages, as the remaining workers got the benefit of productivity growth in the form of higher wages. Higher wages allowed them to buy more goods and...