102 Essays that will change the way you think

Why?

If you have not fully ditched mainstream social media, you might have come across a certain popular self-help book with black-on-white serif font cover. I could elaborate why I really did not like the book (and maybe I will at a later point), but I could also do something proactive and just collect essays, articles and blog posts that changed the way I think or that I refer to just a little bit too much. This is the ongoing place to collect things because I really like a good list.
Last updated: 2024-09-01. 4/102 texts collected.

The Internet

We need to rewild the internet

by Maria Farrell and Robin Berjon, via Noema

Have you ever thought about how our dying forests are very much a result of similar historical events that lead to damage to our fragile, monocultured internet?

"Rewilding the internet is more than a metaphor. It’s a framework and plan. It gives us fresh eyes for the wicked problem of extraction and control, and new means and allies to fix it."

My website is a shifting house next to a river of knowledge. What could yours be?

by Laurel Schwulst, for The Creative Independant and Are.na

In this essay, the author explores the question what a website can be post-social media. To Schwulst, a website can anything, from a garden that slowly grows to a shelf to display to a puddle that appears and dries up after a while. It's a really nice read and it reiterates the value of having a website for yourself, as part of a bigger, healthier web.
(There are birds here, too.)

"Instead of a cloud, let's use a metaphor that makes the web's individual, cooperative nodes more visible. This way, we can remember the responsibility we each have in building a better web. The web is a flock of birds or a sea of punctuation marks, each tending or forgetting about their web garden or puddle home with a river of knowledge nearby."

Why every Site needs a Links Page

By Melonking

This essay made me have a link page (and influenced this list, too)

"Linking to other sites is an act of rebellion; but its also an act of meditation, and of ego death - linking to the work of others is a way of celebrating their achievements and by doing so, gaining dignity for yourself and your work. You deserve to be part of the web, not its final destination; and there is respect in knowing that. Its a two way street, a conversation, and a collaboration."

Social Quitting

by Corey Doctorow via Locusmagazine

(If I ever ranted to you about Enshittification, this is the link I wanted to send you and forgot)

"One day, they were sparsely populated fringe services, the next day, everyone you knew was using them and you had to sign up to stay in touch. Then, just as quickly, they imploded, turning into ghost towns, then punchlines, then forgotten ruins."