How Can You Think That?! Political Book Club: Enshittification, by Cory Doctorow
A book club for conservatives and liberals who want to get out of their echo chambers and bridge the great divide. Buy the book, read it, and come join us for a lively discussion.
This month's book is Enshittification, by Cory Doctorow
About the Book:
Enshittification: It’s not just you— the internet sucks now. It’s been enshittified. That was no accident, and it’s not gonna fix itself. Here’s how we’ll disenshittify it so we can have a new, good internet.
We are all living through the Enshittocene—the Great Enshittening—a time in which the services that matter to us, that we rely on, are being turned into gi- ant piles of shit. It’s frustrating. Demoralizing. Even terrifying.
The once-glorious internet has degenerated into “platforms” that rose to dominance because they delivered convenient and delightful services efficiently and reliably. But once we were locked in, the tech bosses turned on us, relying on our dependency even as their services got worse and worse. The platform bosses did the same to the companies that had flocked to their services to sell stuff to us. Once we were all locked in—businesses and users—the tech companies stripped out all utility, save the bare minimum needed to stave off total collapse.
In Enshittification, Cory Doctorow shows us where the problem comes from: not the iron laws of economics, or the great forces of history, but specific policy choices made by powerful people. These are choices that can be undone. Enshittification is a diagnosis, and it is a cure.
More about the book club:
We’ve all felt it: Whether we’ve argued pointlessly with someone on social media, felt our blood pressure rise as we’ve fought over politics with family members, or simply veered delicately away from certain topics, it’s hard to ignore the chasm between those who hold opposing political views. And it feels like it’s getting worse, that politics are getting uglier, and that reasonable discussion is falling by the wayside. What can ordinary people do to bridge the great divide? We can read books that smart and reasonable people have written in defense of their views and we can talk about these books with others who may or may not wear the political stripes we do. Come to Shelf Life Books for a monthly book club that does just that. Ideally, participants will have read the book assigned for that day, and will come prepared to discuss it. All of the books on our list will be made available by Shelf Life. We will meet from 11 AM to 1 PM on the last Saturday of every month (except for April)
This month's book is Enshittification, by Cory Doctorow
About the Book:
Enshittification: It’s not just you— the internet sucks now. It’s been enshittified. That was no accident, and it’s not gonna fix itself. Here’s how we’ll disenshittify it so we can have a new, good internet.
We are all living through the Enshittocene—the Great Enshittening—a time in which the services that matter to us, that we rely on, are being turned into gi- ant piles of shit. It’s frustrating. Demoralizing. Even terrifying.
The once-glorious internet has degenerated into “platforms” that rose to dominance because they delivered convenient and delightful services efficiently and reliably. But once we were locked in, the tech bosses turned on us, relying on our dependency even as their services got worse and worse. The platform bosses did the same to the companies that had flocked to their services to sell stuff to us. Once we were all locked in—businesses and users—the tech companies stripped out all utility, save the bare minimum needed to stave off total collapse.
In Enshittification, Cory Doctorow shows us where the problem comes from: not the iron laws of economics, or the great forces of history, but specific policy choices made by powerful people. These are choices that can be undone. Enshittification is a diagnosis, and it is a cure.
More about the book club:
We’ve all felt it: Whether we’ve argued pointlessly with someone on social media, felt our blood pressure rise as we’ve fought over politics with family members, or simply veered delicately away from certain topics, it’s hard to ignore the chasm between those who hold opposing political views. And it feels like it’s getting worse, that politics are getting uglier, and that reasonable discussion is falling by the wayside. What can ordinary people do to bridge the great divide? We can read books that smart and reasonable people have written in defense of their views and we can talk about these books with others who may or may not wear the political stripes we do. Come to Shelf Life Books for a monthly book club that does just that. Ideally, participants will have read the book assigned for that day, and will come prepared to discuss it. All of the books on our list will be made available by Shelf Life. We will meet from 11 AM to 1 PM on the last Saturday of every month (except for April)
Where is it happening?
1302 4 St SW #100, Calgary, AB, Canada, Alberta T2R 0X8
Know what’s Happening Next — before everyone else does.
Host or PublisherShelf Life Books
