In less than a week’s time, two significant commentaries on robots appeared. Matthew Lynn wrote about “A Strategy for Keeping the Robots at Bay.” Holman Jenkins wrote that we should “Bring in the Robots.” The difference in the two articles illustrates the promise and fear robots create in our psyche.

On the one hand, we are excited about the possibilities robots provide us. Companies are developing a driverless car. Robots are found in nearly every factory in this country. Robots even perform surgical operations. Some futurists imagine a day “when machines perform whole categories of traditional human jobs.” This would even include “knowledge work.”

Robots now routinely perform tedious manufacturing jobs that used to be done by humans. They are more reliable, don’t need to take breaks, and don’t ask for pay raises. Other jobs will be affected by robotics. Scientists believe they will soon develop robots that will drive trucks and vans better than humans can.

That is why one of the commentaries argued that it was time to have robots take over certain forms of transportation. The two most recent accidents demonstrate that it was likely human error that caused the botched landing at San Francisco airport and the catastrophic train derailment in Quebec.

I’m not sure we are ready for pilotless airplanes or unmanned trains any more than we are ready for self-driving cars. But it is worth noting that Google’s driverless car is already licensed in three states. Legislatures may be ready for robots and self-driving cars long before the general public. Corporations are even more likely to remove employees in favor of automation.

That is why the other commentary talked about adapting to a world where robots take some of the jobs we used to perform. If you want a good job in this futuristic world, you will have to be creative and find new opportunities and industries.