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What we've been reading: Algorithms, tourists and debt

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27th Apr 2018
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Welcome to what we've been reading, the AccountingWEB editors weekly round up of the stories that have caught their attention. 

This week, the editorial team has been reading a varied bunch of stories involving algorithms, tourist apartments in Mallorca and a financial dystopia bourne out of the what if question: what if the dollar irrevocably collapsed. 

But this isn't just about us, we want to hear from you! What kind of online book club would this be if we were the only ones reading? So what have you been reading? Comment below with your recommendations.  

Francois: Style is an algorithm

Francois“The message of many things in America is ‘Like this or die’.” That’s a line from George W.S. Trow’s famous essay Within the Context of No Context. The line is the epigraph of this excellent essay on how algorithms have displaced their creators.

Amazon is about to launch a new Echo, the Echo Look. Basically, they’ve added a camera to the existing AI voice assistant. The Echo Look will help you with you with your style choices. The algorithm will help you decide.

But isn’t that a bit creepy? Do we really want to displace or reassign our desires and creativity to machines?
 

Valme: Palma de Mallorca will be first Spanish city to ban tourist apartments

Valme ClaroTourism is certainly very important to the economy of countries like Spain. But how much tourism is too much? Whereas the hordes of tourists coming from countries such as Germany, the UK or Scandinavia may be a lifesaver for many Spanish businesses, it seems that some Spanish cities had to come to a breaking point before realising the situation is not sustainable anymore.

Spanish citizens are used to hearing news from the Balearic Islands (especially Ibiza) involving a worrying lack of doctors and other medical staff, and in general, a lack of workers in almost every profession not directly involved with tourism. Taking into account the high unemployment rate in Spain, the fact that there are so many well-paid vacant jobs in the Balearics might come as a surprise. However, the impossibility to find a place to live makes it impossible for most to stay.

The problem is not exclusive to the Balearics, and interestingly, many of those who complain about the situation also actively contribute to it, in a weird case of double morality. I don’t think I will ever forget the moment when I heard a Lanzarote resident complaining about the difficulty of finding long-term rent in the island only to then admit she rented her own apartment to tourists. Some people are a mystery.

Richard: The Mandibles: A family, 2029 - 2047 by Lionel Shriver

Richard HattersleyI'm sure like me you don’t give half a thought when shopping; eggs, toilet paper or bread are thrown in the basket without consideration. But after reading Lionel Shriver’s The Mandibles, you’ll probably stockpile some of these supermarket essentials.

It’s 2029 and America’s economy has fallen off a cliff: the dollar has crashed and the country’s national debt becomes such that it is near-impossible to repay. Hyperinflation has taken hold. A trip to the supermarket has become hostile: a cabbage is now worth $30, while the last box of porridge incites a cereal aisle punch-up.  

The Mandible family lost millions in this crash. The family’s generous inheritance was pretty much wiped overnight, much to the chagrin of the family members who were waiting to cash in. The 97-year old patriarch is out on the street, giving up his palatial care home. And a comparatively booming Mexico has even beefed up its border control to stop illegal American immigrants from hopping the fence.

But for accountants a solution to this financial dystopia in the novel’s denouement might sound familiar (spoiler alert!). Not that I want to indulge any Making Tax Digital conspiracy theories, but…

The US government implants everyone on birth with a chip. Among the chips many uses, it enables the IRS to record every purchase, utility bill, taxes owed and to regulate any savings above the average expenses for the month.

As such the chip does away with cash, since that was so hard to trace and tax. Oh and the chip spells the end of the tax return. That means no rounding up or questionable business expenses. Ring any bells? Okay, am I alone in reaching for the tin foil hat?

Seriously though, the fiscal warfare Shriver describes in her biting novel is all too plausible and jabs you into realising how fast everything could wipe out overnight.

You’ll never look at a trip to the supermarket the same again. Now, how many tinned goods can I fit in the garage...

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By meadowsaw227
30th Apr 2018 08:29

Long live the barter system !

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