Baffler #83

Finding yourself sliding down the lower leg of the K-shaped economy? You’re not alone in facing the downturn: sunny prospects are saved for those with assets to inflate and the dwindling number of flesh-and-blood employees of the Magnificent Seven. Those tech companies’ AI circle jerk has skyrocketed the fortunes of a select few while turning white-collar industries into charnel houses, with email job after email job vibe-coded into the grave. The gigification of American life means that you’re never truly without employment opportunities: sell yourself as a solopreneur gun-for-hire and you too can join the freelancer majority that some predict will dominate more than half the American workforce by 2027.