There's a story Buffet tells about his visit to china where they are showing him this big civil construction project in progress.  Its a bridge or a canal or something.  Anyhow he points out that they could replace 50 or so of the chinese workers digging wtih shovel with one big earth moving truck and 2 operators.  The chinese dignitary looks at him slanted as if Warren were out of touch, and tells him that in China they have a need to create as many jobs as possible.

Warren replies, if this is all about created work for people then why give them shovels?  Give them spoons.

The point is that doing more with fewer workers raises the standard of living.  The automation of the factory has put so many workers out.  Did you know that GM builds about as many cars as the did in the 80s.  But now they do it with half as many workers.  Cars are now more affordable.  hell they even have all kinds of complex things the cars from the 80s didn't, ubiquitous auto trannies, anti lock breaks, air bags, crumple zones etc.  There are many more parts and much more assembly required.  Yet all the car companies do it with about half the labor the needed a few decades ago.

Never cry for 'lost' jobs when a more efficient and better innovation comes along.  We'd still be living in caves. 

Now to beat the dead horse, what about the mechanized tractor/plow/planter?  Put a lot of farm hands out of work.  But they moved to the cities and took up manufacturing jobs.  coinciding wiht a general rise in the living standard.  Now they have gps guided planters that don't even need a driver.  They put more farm hands out of work.   The benefit is cheaper food.   Who can argue with feeding people for less?