The sources contain a wide variety of posts and speeches by Cory Doctorow, ranging from critiques of the "enshittification" of digital platforms to analyses of economic corruption and personal writing methodologies.
Technology and the "Post-American" Internet
- The Post-American Internet: A speech delivered at Hamburg's Chaos Communications Congress 1.
- Google's AI pricing plan: A post regarding Google's strategy for its AI services 2.
- The online community trilemma: An exploration of the history of Usenet and the tension between hierarchical organization and reputation capital in digital spaces 3, 4.
- Writing vs AI: Doctorow argues that corporations and students use chatbots for service and essays because "they don't give a shit," shifting the focus from making sense to merely making sentences 5.
- Enshittification: While discussed by others in the sources, the term is explicitly credited to Doctorow to describe how platforms start as "awesome" for users but eventually transition to serving advertisers at the users' expense 6, 7.
Economic Critiques and Corporate Corruption
- Where did the money go?: An analysis of the "K-shaped recovery" where wealth is drained from workers and consumers through "greedflation," junk fees, and government-supported scams 8, 9.
- The Epstein class and collapse porn: A critique of how GDP serves as a measure that benefits the wealthy rather than average workers, and how the "Epstein class" profits even when the economy "eats shit" 10, 11.
- Trump and the unmighty dollar: A discussion on how the global trade system was designed by the U.S. to ensure commodities are priced in dollars, allowing the U.S. to pay for "real things" by simply typing zeros into a spreadsheet 12, 13.
- Predistribution vs redistribution (Big Tech edition): Regarding how Big Tech companies secured political loyalty through significant donations and "Epstein Memorial Ballroom" contributions 14.
- Stock swindles 15.
Immigration and Institutional Decay
- Luxury Kafka: A detailed look at the "terrifying and enraging" nature of the U.S. immigration system. Doctorow describes it as literally unnavigable without expensive lawyers and critiques the replacement of human operators with "Elon's" AI chatbots 16-18.
- The world needs an Ireland for disenshittification and Big Tech Omerta: These posts examine how the Irish state has been "captured" by corporations to serve as a site for regulatory arbitrage, undermining European privacy laws like the GDPR 19, 20.
- The petty (but undeniable) delights of cultivating ungovernability as a habit: A reflection on Margaret Thatcher's "no such thing as society" maxim 21.
- The Nuremberg Caucus 22.
Writing Methods and Reviews
- The Memex Method: Doctorow explains his use of a "commonplace book" for recording fragmentary ideas. He argues that the act of public blogging serves as a powerful mnemonic device, helping these fragments "nucleate" into synthetic analysis 23-26.
- All laws are local: A post featuring Douglas Adams' three rules on how people perceive technology based on their age 27.
- Book Reviews: Doctorow provides commentary on Justin Key’s The Hospital at the End Of the World 28, Tim Berners-Lee’s book This is/was For Everyone 29, and Gretchen McCulloch’s Because Internet 30.
Would you like me to create a tailored report summarizing Doctorow’s specific theories on "enshittification" and "regulatory arbitrage," or perhaps flashcards on his "Memex Method" for information management?