The Plague of the Overemployed, Bored and Attention Seeking

There is a growing community of workers who find themselves multiple side hustles while usually working a full time job as well. Often fueling their multiple gigs through a proficiency using AI tools like Chat GPT, they call themselves the "overemployed". Their story fits into a larger theme I noticed across several stories that were essentially about the effects of bored or attention seeking behavior from (mostly) young men.

There was the story of a guy who decided to randomly throw $200,000 out his car window in individual $100 bills, which brought Interstate traffic to a stop. Or the guy who hacked a right-wing commentator's Twitter account because he was bored. Or the US military document leak that was apparently caused by a guy trying to show off for other guys in a chat room.

These stories have a common thread. The people involved aren't acting out of some grand vision or purpose. They are trying to make a quick buck, cure their boredom or look good for their friends. Hardly the motivations of master criminals.