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Mike Masnick
@masnick.com

I spent more time on this piece than almost anything else I've written in the last year. Building a better, more decentralized internet is an inherent necessity if you want a functioning democracy. I hope people find it a useful encapsulation of where we're at. www.liberalism.org/p/enshittifi...

liberalism.orgEnshittification, Despotification, and the Open InternetIt’s not about whether technology is inherently good or bad, liberating or oppressive. Architecture shapes incentives; incentives shape outcomes.
Mike Masnick
@masnick.com

The key argument is that centralized systems aren't *just* leading to enshittification (a la @doctorow.pluralistic.net), but also to "despotification." The centralized systems create chokepoints that become targets not just of profit rent seekers, but political ones as well.

Mike Masnick
@masnick.com

Control over centralized chokepoints becomes a team effort between those seeking to extract both economic & political power.

Mike Masnick
@masnick.com

But a key point in all of this: if everyone just passively accepts what's given to us, we don't reach that better, more decentralized, more democratic world (hey look where things stand today). It requires making some key choices.

22 reposts154 likes

Dom Pates
@dompates.bsky.social

A signifier towards a possible evolution of (at least a part of) the Internet. We don’t all have to be chained into enshittified echo chambers for ever more. We can build the next phase too. Great piece.

GrantSodiosa.bsky.social
@grantsodiosa.bsky.social

#Respect. The reasoning is profoundly compelling, germane, and understandable. The effort involved I can begin to imagine. Your pride in your work is amply deserved. That said I beg you to edit ✍️ the preamble to read: I hope people find it a useful encapsulation of where we are.