Technology

So, more broadly, want to express the sense that there is a bigger issue around 'unspoken market collusion' that I dont know fits under the existing terms of monopoly, price fixing, or conspiracy, but is very very very clearly evident in a wide range of markets. Three great examples of this are oil prices, food prices during and post pandemic (coffee being one that goes far further back in time; 16 ounce coffee bags used to be standard), and digital services (ie, the enshitification of all things; a 'conspiracy' to make all things 'worse' because their is no where else to go).

The free market idealism, a worship of the supposed power of competition, is so obviously horse shit that only 8th grade level MBAs and their sycophants truly believe that shit. Its so obviously not how things work at scale, but because of field effects of many players whose are incentives are aligned (around capture and deregulation), we seem to have lost any real mechanisms for addressing the fact that so many industries are in a silent form of conspiracy to fix prices and monopolize market spaces.

Its frustrating that its happening, but its equally frustrating to not have people calling it out for what it is. Each of these story lines is but a thread in a broader narrative around these examples (Apple and Amazon), consistently happening over time, repeatedly fucking over consumers who are effectively operated on by both governments and corporations to become perfect consumers (tools to destroy the yields of production to justify endless production).

We need a way to push back against the kinds of capture that we don't seem to currently have the ability to address. Specifically (at least in the US) Citizens United, and corporate lobbying. I'm tired of pretending that markets solve anything. I'm tired of pretending that 'good guy capitalism' is anything other than a half cycle of a corporate mechanism to enslave the world.