I don't have any cable (or neo-cable) subscriptions anymore. I cancelled my Spotify ones as well. Being on their free plan is annoying enough that I'm tempted to delete my account. I do want to pay for the media I'm into but I can't justify the logics of paying for the slice of time in which I use it — I want to actually have the media. You know, like how folks would at least own DVDs in the 2000s^[1]. Just because Warner Brothers and Sony decided to introduce a new profit model that works to keep them even more enriched doesn't mean I have to comply: they're not the law. Ironically, in cancelling more of these subscriptions, I had little reason to pull out my television — I only recently did to be ready to drop into a game of Mario Kart with a friend. But even that act feels too arresting — that of sitting in front of a TV. I just don't care for it anymore.

Watching

I ended up watching quite a few videos this week. The ones that I found useful to share are ones I linked to:

• Cory Doctorow on DemocracyNow: He digs into the bullshit that's spewed from CEOs about the need for AI and makes it clear what the end goal is.
• Nick Estes and Jared Ball's recorded livestream: This is a direct link since it's a recorded livestream. I clipped a part where Ball really digs into it about the role of modern Black cultural production and hegemonic order.
• Technology Connections and their idea on the atrophy of human-driven search

Reading

Back to reading things and writing from the site, I found the following pulling my attention as well:

I'm reading a few books at the moment:

• World Wide Waste: This book's first chapter really reads like a rant. It's kind of uniquely printed — which is much easier to show than to describe. It's proven a bit more useful as you read on; going into the nature of plastics and electronic production.
• World Eaters: I got my hands on an ARC some time ago and was a bit disappointed with the introduction. I'm giving it a second chance since I had a sour opinion on the introduction the first time around.
• Lurking: This book has been on my TBR list for some time now and it's already been part of a piece I'm writing about consent on the social Internet.

Hoping for better days.