What we’re about
We are a free & open group dedicated to exploring issues common to all humanity. We meet almost every other Sunday between 5pm- 7p.m. at a cafe in Publika, Kuala Lumpur. We encourage everyone to join in the discussion, but there's no compulsion to do so.
This is a discussion not a lecture nor debate and you don't need to be a Ph.D holder.
The owners of the cafe have allowed us to use their premises without charging so we urge you to return this generosity by buying at least a drink.
Interested in hosting a meet up? We strongly recommend attending at least 2 meet ups consecutively, so that you know what to expect and also have a good feel for moderating.
Once you’ve done that, send us a message on MeetUp.com with a short write up on the topic you’d like to moderate. This write up must have:
> 1. A title; which lets members know generally what to expect from the discussion.
> 2. A description, which may be in the form statements or questions, we find that crisp bullet points are best.
Try to cover multiple angles and hidden questions in the topic; ideally about 3 different ones. Remember that 2 hours is a pretty long time, thinking about the many dimensions within topic will definitely help drive the discussion.
Once you’ve sent us the write up, give us about a week to get back to you, and if it meets those minimum requirements listed above, we’ll try our best to schedule your topic in the next couple of months.
Upcoming events (1)
See all- The Shite-giest: Is everything getting worse, or is it just my gut biome?Top G Coffee & Cafe, Kuala Lumpur
Zeitgeist: the general intellectual, moral, and cultural climate of an era (Merriam-Webster)
Shite/Sheit: Shit, but worse (Urban Dictionary)Since forever ago, segments of society have grappled with the notion that the world is turning to shite. From concerns about moral and economic decay to fears of cultural decline, the sentiment that "everything is getting worse" resonates across generations.
In more recent times, the perception that we have truly entered the Age of Enshite-enment has been fueled by various factors, including political polarization, economic disparity, environmental crises, social fragmentation, and having one’s advances rejected on Tinder.
This discussion will examine the validity of this sentiment, beginning with the idea of the Enshittification of the Internet by Cory Doctorrow, and expanding out into broader domains.
Questions:
The Internet: The term "enshittification," coined by author and activist Cory Doctorow, describes the gradual degradation of services or products, particularly online platforms, as they shift focus from user satisfaction to profit maximization.- What are the mechanisms that have led to this?
- What are the human characteristics/traits that these mechanisms are targeting? To what extent are we complicit as users in this process?
‘What many of us feel’: why ‘enshittification’ is Macquarie Dictionary’s word of the year: https://www.theguardian.com/science/2024/nov/26/enshittification-macquarie-dictionary-word-of-the-year-explained
Enshittification: The Rise and Fall of Big Tech — with Cory Doctorow: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E7AxrFQ7jIMThe Economic System: Examining the mechanisms affecting the internet, and their connection to the larger economic system.
- Are the mechanisms of enshittification at work in the broader economy, outside the internet?
- Beyond purely financial motives often associated with capitalism, what other systemic factors might contribute to perceived worsening in the economy or other large systems? (ignorance of consequences, optimisation to the game, scale, scarcity, information asymmetry, myth of inevitability, individualism, etc).
Culture and Society: Social interaction, politics, discourse, environmental crisis, and an endless list of crappy movies on Netflix.
- In what ways have cultural vibrancy and social cohesion changed over recent decades? Do these changes signify decline, transformation, or progress?
"Is Culture Dying?" by The New Yorker: https://www.newyorker.com/culture/open-questions/is-culture-dying
Haidt’s The Anxious Generation: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tcr0yg7Mvg8Democratic backsliding:
https://freedomhouse.org/article/new-report-election-manipulation-and-armed-conflict-drove-18th-consecutive-year-decline?History: They who do not know history are condemned to repeat it. They who do, are condemned to watch that other group do it again.
- Are current societal challenges unprecedented, or have similar periods of perceived decline occurred in the past? What lessons can we learn from historical cycles?
Causes of Societal Collapse: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Societal_collapse#Causes_of_collapse
Is Every Civilization Doomed to Fail?: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uqsBx58GxYYReally Tho: Examining if we are in a shitestorm or if our radar is just overpowered.
- Are things getting worse? Or is it just our perception?
- What evidence exists to suggest that, in some areas, things are improving rather than worsening?
- How can we reconcile positive developments with narratives of decline?
- What timescales do we use to assess improvement or decline?
The world is awful. The world is much better. The world can be much better.: https://ourworldindata.org/much-better-awful-can-be-better
OECD’s “How’s Life? 2024”: https://www.oecd.org/en/publications/how-s-life-2024_90ba854a-en.html
"Everything Is Always Getting Worse (Until It Isn't)" by JA Westenberg: https://www.joanwestenberg.com/everything-is-always-getting-worse-until-it-isnt/The Flush: Deshittification
- What can we do to make things better? What effective actions can individuals or communities take to resist or even reverse these patterns of decline?
- Whose responsibility is it?
- Are you feeling optimistic now?
