Creative Destruction: 20 Things That Have Gone Obsolete From Last Decade

Below is a showcase of capitalism’s creative destruction-a hallmark of progress and innovation.

From Huffington Post: (hat tip Prof Mark Perry)

The last ten years have brought us a windfall of new gadgets and gizmos, and with them, a new way of life.

Since 2000, we've gained iPods and iPads, Travelocity and Twitter, Facebook and Foursquare, BlackBerry smartphones and Android devices, Xboxes and Wiis, among many other new services, sites, and electronics. We're now poking, tweeting, Googling, and Skyping.

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What this means:

Jobs had been created (in new flourishing industries) and lost (on obsolete sectors).

While changes do not affect everyone similarly, the net result is a positive or a net gain for consumers (and the society) as seen in:

-increased conveniences brought about by better quality of products and services

-greater access and selection

-heightened productivity

-enhanced wellbeing

-added purchasing power (via growth deflation-more supplies)

Overall, real wealth has increased (despite government’s inflationism)