I'm not certain this is really true. Certainly the number of people required to dig a ditch has plummeted over the last 200 years. A few skiploader drivers can do the work of thousands. As robots get cheaper and more capable, it's not too hard to imagine a future where humans stop doing purely physical jobs entirely.
I also think the thesis of "everyone should be respected" is inconsistent with the thesis of "education is good". If knowledge and education is good, then lack thereof is inherently not-good. This doesn't mean you should spit on the binman, but it does mean you will probably steer your kids away from that career path.
I don't find it inconsistent. Not-good is not negative, it's neutral. Martial arts skill is good, lack of martial arts skills is neutral.
Also, knowledge is good, education is only good to the extent that it brings you knowledge, and neither mean that you don't drive a garbage truck.
If it helps, replace ditch-diggers with skiploader drivers. Replace assembly line workers with robot repairmen. The point is that somebody will have to be doing something, rather than just directing and allocating people who are doing something.
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Ditch diggers have to exist.
I'm not certain this is really true. Certainly the number of people required to dig a ditch has plummeted over the last 200 years. A few skiploader drivers can do the work of thousands. As robots get cheaper and more capable, it's not too hard to imagine a future where humans stop doing purely physical jobs entirely.
I also think the thesis of "everyone should be respected" is inconsistent with the thesis of "education is good". If knowledge and education is good, then lack thereof is inherently not-good. This doesn't mean you should spit on the binman, but it does mean you will probably steer your kids away from that career path.
I don't find it inconsistent. Not-good is not negative, it's neutral. Martial arts skill is good, lack of martial arts skills is neutral.
Also, knowledge is good, education is only good to the extent that it brings you knowledge, and neither mean that you don't drive a garbage truck.
If it helps, replace ditch-diggers with skiploader drivers. Replace assembly line workers with robot repairmen. The point is that somebody will have to be doing something, rather than just directing and allocating people who are doing something.