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- Trump can't do ANYTHING for his base: No oxen available for goring.
- Hey look at this: Delights to delectate.
- Object permanence: 2005, 2010, 2015, 2020, 2024
- Upcoming appearances: Where to find me.
- Recent appearances: Where I've been.
- Latest books: You keep readin' em, I'll keep writin' 'em.
- Upcoming books: Like I said, I'll keep writin' 'em.
- Colophon: All the rest.
Trump can't do ANYTHING for his base (permalink)
Trump's coalition includes a huge number of people who will suffer terribly from his policies, but who voted for him anyway. Trumpism requires that he find ways to keep those Christmas-voting turkeys happy, or at least distracted.
Trump's go-to move for keeping his base happy is inflicting pain on people they hate, like immigrants, racialized people, queers and women. That goes a long way, obviously: there's a kind of person who can be distracted from their own deteriorating material condition by the spectacle of cruel treatment for their enemies.
But Trumpism can't just run on sadism. There's a lot of people who enjoy the sadism, but not so much that it cancels out their own rage at their deteriorating personal conditions. Trump's main tactic is to blame the suffering of his base on the rest of us: "radical leftists," "wokeism" and other hobgoblins of the small-minded. That, too, has its limits – especially when Trump controls Congress, the courts, the senate and the White House. Obviously, Trump isn't above blaming his own people for being traitors (e.g., by sending a literal noose-bearing lynch mob after his own vice president), but there are limits to this, even for Trump. If all the power-brokers in Trump's coalitions are branded as disloyal, cowardly, or traitorous, Trump will have no one left to do the actual work of advancing his agenda.
Ultimately, keeping Trump's base happy requires providing some form of material benefit to that base. Every authoritarian has a version of this – like the cash handouts that Poland's former far-right government gave out:
https://pulitzercenter.org/stories/poland-model-promoting-family-values-cash-handouts
For Trump, this presents a problem: because he represents the interests of exploitation, extraction and looting, everything nice that he gives to everyday people in his base potentially gores the ox of someone who really matters to him. It's no surprise, for example, that he reversed Biden's price-cuts for Big Pharma's most expensive drugs – the cheaper drugs are for sick people, the less profitable they'll be for pharma companies:
https://www.levernews.com/trump-already-disarmed-the-war-on-drug-prices/
Luckily (for Trump), Biden's consumer protection and antitrust agencies teed up a long list of extremely good policies that would directly shift money from rich parasites to everyday people. For example, the Consumer Finance Protection Bureau passed a rule that would make it very easy to find out which bank would charge you the least and pay you the most, and let you switch banks with one click:
https://pluralistic.net/2024/11/01/bankshot/#personal-financial-data-rights
It was a move that would have shifted $667m/year from banks to everyday people, every year, forever. But Trump's most important barons, like Elon Musk, hated the Consumer Finance Protection Bureau and insisted that it be shuttered, so that $667m/year will go to the banks after all – indeed, virtually all of the good things Biden's CFPB decreed the American public would enjoy henceforth have been destroyed. Sure, Trump would have liked to have taken credit for these, but the conflict between stolen valor and displeasing Shadow President Musk will always cash out in Musk's favor.
It's not just the CFPB. The FTC also set up a whole roster of ambitious projects to improve life for Americans. Some of these made the news in a big way, like the antitrust case against Meta:
Trump has lots of upsides from pursuing the Meta case. Everyone hates Meta products, including (especially) the people who are trapped using them because that's where their friends, family, communities, customers or audiences are. Breaking up Meta would be hugely popular with the American people. But also, once a court has convicted Meta of violating antitrust law, Trump can solicit favors – cash and favorable algorithmic treatment – from Meta in exchange for ordering his FTC to go easy on Meta in the "remedy phase," letting them off with a fine, rather than forcing them to spin out Whatsapp and Instagram:
https://pluralistic.net/2024/11/12/the-enemy-of-your-enemy/#is-your-enemy
But even if Trump lets Meta walk, there's plenty of great stuff Biden's FTC did that he could take credit for – policies that would help everyday people.
The most prominent of these is the FTC's "Click to Cancel" rule. It's a pretty simple rule: companies have to make it as easy to cancel a subscription as it was to sign up for it.
In other words, they can't do that thing – beloved of everything from the New York Times to every manosphere influencer's supplement business – where you can sign up for a subscription with one click, but you can't cancel unless you phone them, wait on hold, and beg them to let you off the hook.
Companies do this on purpose, because it's super profitable. Amazon executives carried on internal email threads where they straight up said that they'd deliberately made it confusingly easy to sign up for Prime and basically impossible to stop paying for it:
https://pluralistic.net/2023/09/03/big-tech-cant-stop-telling-on-itself/
This is a no-brainer. Companies make signing up for subscriptions into a greased slide, and they make canceling subscriptions into a greased pole.
No wonder, then, that when the FTC solicited public comments on a proposed "click to cancel" rule, they had no trouble building up the evidentiary record needed to pass the rule.
Now, Trump's FTC has announced that they are delaying enforcement of the rule until mid-July:
https://techcrunch.com/2025/05/10/ftc-delays-enforcement-of-click-to-cancel-rule/
This is the second time they've delayed enforcement (originally, the rule was supposed to go into effect in January). Trump FTC chairman Andrew Ferguson had no trouble getting the votes for the suspension, because he illegally fired the two Democratic Commissioners, Alvaro Bedoya and Rebecca Slaughter:
Ferguson is proof that the FTC can't do anything material for Trump's base. Sure, he can set up a snitch-line so tht FTC employees can rat each other out for being "woke":
https://www.ftc.gov/system/files/ftc_gov/pdf/bedoya-statement-emergency-motion.pdf
This should be a slam dunk. It epitomizes the "unfair and deceptive" business practices Section 5 of the FTC Act empowers the agency to snuff out. The Trump admin is unwilling to gore the ox of out-and-out scammers, people who trick you into unkillable subscriptions. It seems that there's no material benefit that Trump's oligarch backers are willing to cede to working people. All they can offer is cruelty.
(Image: Vis M, CC BY-SA 4.0, modified)
Hey look at this (permalink)
- How to Tie Up the Most Precious Resource in Washington https://prospect.org/politics/2025-05-06-how-to-tie-up-most-precious-resource-in-washington-cra/
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Toronto’s unsold condo rate has reached ‘an incredible level’: expert https://www.ctvnews.ca/business/real-estate/article/torontos-unsold-condo-rate-has-reached-an-incredible-level-expert/ (h/t Super Punch)
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Forcing Bank Deposits to Subsidize Stablecoins: the GENIUS Act https://www.creditslips.org/creditslips/2025/05/the-genius-acts-insolvency-provisions-crypto-investors-come-ahead-of-bank-depositors.html
Object permanence (permalink)
#20yrsago BBC’s RSS: Why do we need a license to aggregate, period? https://memex.craphound.com/2005/05/09/bbcs-rss-why-do-we-need-a-license-to-aggregate-period/
#20yrsago Hillary “RIAA” Rosen: iPod DRM is cruel and unfriendly! <a "="" dracula="" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20050511014032/http://www.huffingtonpost.com/theblog/archive/2005/05/steve-jobs-let-.html'>https://web.archive.org/web/20050511014032/http://www.huffingtonpost.com/theblog/archive/2005/05/steve-jobs-let-.html</a>
#20yrsago Stoker’s Dracula as a blog <a href=" https:="" infocult.typepad.com="">https://infocult.typepad.com/dracula/
#20yrsago Canadian MP blogs from Parliament’s floor https://web.archive.org/web/20050514023619/http://www.montesolberg.com/2005/05/voting.htm
#20yrsago Journal of Ride Theory amazing zine is now an amazing book https://memex.craphound.com/2005/05/11/journal-of-ride-theory-amazing-zine-is-now-an-amazing-book/
#15yrsago FOR THE WIN launches today https://memex.craphound.com/2010/05/11/for-the-win-launches-today/
#15yrsago IT in developing nations makes women and poor people happier https://www.bbc.com/news/10108551
#15yrsago Heinlein freaked out at “invasive” review of STRANGER IN A STRANGER LAND https://web.archive.org/web/20100514220628/https://thewaythefutureblogs.com/2010/05/robert-a-heinlein-algis-budrys-and-me/
#10yrsago Copyfighting, jailbreaking legend Ed Felten is the White House’s new deputy CTO https://web.archive.org/web/20150512045054/https://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2015/05/11/white-house-names-dr-ed-felten-deputy-us-chief-technology-officer
#10yrsago Finance deserves its corrupt reputation https://web.archive.org/web/20150618083908/https://faculty.chicagobooth.edu/luigi.zingales/papers/research/Finance.pdf
#10yrsago Librarians: privacy’s champions https://www.thenation.com/article/archive/librarians-versus-nsa/
#10yrsago Teacher forced into retirement for showing archival queer-scare movie https://www.nydailynews.com/2015/05/07/retiring-missouri-teacher-suspended-after-showing-1959-anti-gay-boys-beware-video-to-class/
#10yrsago Citizen journo who videod Eric Garner’s murder now hounded by NYPD https://web.archive.org/web/20150426160713/https://www.vice.com/read/nine-months-after-he-filmed-eric-garners-killing-the-cops-are-trying-to-put-ramsey-orta-behind-bars
#10yrsago Senators demand CIA boss admit he lied about hacking torture committee https://www.dailydot.com/debug/senate-democrats-john-brennan-cia-computer-search/
#10yrsago Commercial prison messaging system’s terms of service lands inmate in solitary https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2015/05/jpay-will-no-longer-claim-ownership-over-inmate-family-correspondence
#10yrsago DOJ tells judges they don’t get a say in whether information is classified https://web.archive.org/web/20150510081211/https://firstlook.org/theintercept/2015/05/08/governments-bid-keep-gitmo-force-feeding-videos-secret-runs-skeptical-judges/
#5yrsago The real Lord of the Flies kids were really nice to each other https://pluralistic.net/2020/05/09/im-gonna-say-it-now/#humankind
#5yrsago Brett Favre received $1.1m in welfare money for speeches he never gave https://pluralistic.net/2020/05/09/im-gonna-say-it-now/#welfare-fraud
#5yrsago Flooding Ohio's "work-refusal" snitchline https://pluralistic.net/2020/05/09/im-gonna-say-it-now/#chaffing
#5yrsago Armed Michigan voters escort their state rep to work https://pluralistic.net/2020/05/09/im-gonna-say-it-now/#arms-racism
#5yrsago Facebook's "supreme court" https://pluralistic.net/2020/05/11/delete-facebook/#star-chamber
#5yrsago Podcast of "Rules for Writers" https://pluralistic.net/2020/05/11/delete-facebook/#turkey-city
#5yrsago NLRB nukes Hearst's union-busting https://pluralistic.net/2020/05/11/delete-facebook/#rosebud
#5yrsago The bailout is working (for Wall Street) https://pluralistic.net/2020/05/11/delete-facebook/#guillotine-watch
#5yrsago Shanghai Disneyland re-opens https://pluralistic.net/2020/05/11/delete-facebook/#splash-mountain
#5yrsago 80% of Britons want happiness, not growth <a #the-algorithm-tm"="" 05="" 11="" 2024="" for-you="" href="https://pluralistic.net/2020/05/11/delete-facebook/#line-go-up'>https://pluralistic.net/2020/05/11/delete-facebook/#line-go-up</a>
#1yrago Algorithmic feeds are a twiddler's playground <a href=" https:="" pluralistic.net="">https://pluralistic.net/2024/05/11/for-you/#the-algorithm-tm
#1yrago AI is a WMD https://pluralistic.net/2024/05/09/shitting-in-the-well/#advon
Upcoming appearances (permalink)
- Pittsburgh: Picks and Shovels at White Whale Books, May 15
https://whitewhalebookstore.com/events/20250515 -
Pittsburgh: PyCon, May 16
https://us.pycon.org/2025/schedule/ -
Virtual: Writing to Resist (California Writers Club Berkeley):
https://cwc-berkeley.org/writing-to-resist-5-18-25/ -
PDX: Teardown 2025, Jun 20-22
https://www.crowdsupply.com/teardown/portland-2025 -
PDX: Picks and Shovels with bunnie Huang at Barnes and Noble, Jun 20
https://stores.barnesandnoble.com/event/9780062183697-0 -
London: How To Academy with Riley Quinn, Jul 1
https://howtoacademy.com/events/cory-doctorow-the-fight-against-the-big-tech-oligarchy/ -
Manchester: Picks and Shovels at Blackwell's Bookshop, Jul 2
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/an-evening-with-cory-doctorow-tickets-1308451968059 -
Manchester: Co-operatives UK Co-op Congress keynote, Jul 3
https://www.uk.coop/events-and-training/events-calendar/co-op-congress-2025-book-your-place -
New Orleans: DeepSouthCon63, Oct 10-12, 2025
http://www.contraflowscifi.org/
Recent appearances (permalink)
- Remember when the internet was… good? What happened? (The Current)
https://www.cbc.ca/listen/live-radio/1-63-the-current/clip/16145000-remember-internet-was…-good-what-happened -
Don't Be Evil (Who Killed the Internet?)
https://www.cbc.ca/player/play/audio/9.6746333 -
How Enshittification Conquered the 21st Century and How We Can Overthrow It (Cloudfest)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Ai-fC-2Bpo
Latest books (permalink)
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- Picks and Shovels: a sequel to "Red Team Blues," about the heroic era of the PC, Tor Books (US), Head of Zeus (UK), February 2025 (https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250865908/picksandshovels).
- The Bezzle: a sequel to "Red Team Blues," about prison-tech and other grifts, Tor Books (US), Head of Zeus (UK), February 2024 (the-bezzle.org). Signed, personalized copies at Dark Delicacies (https://www.darkdel.com/store/p3062/Available_Feb_20th%3A_The_Bezzle_HB.html#/).
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"The Lost Cause:" a solarpunk novel of hope in the climate emergency, Tor Books (US), Head of Zeus (UK), November 2023 (http://lost-cause.org). Signed, personalized copies at Dark Delicacies (https://www.darkdel.com/store/p3007/Pre-Order_Signed_Copies%3A_The_Lost_Cause_HB.html#/)
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"The Internet Con": A nonfiction book about interoperability and Big Tech (Verso) September 2023 (http://seizethemeansofcomputation.org). Signed copies at Book Soup (https://www.booksoup.com/book/9781804291245).
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"Red Team Blues": "A grabby, compulsive thriller that will leave you knowing more about how the world works than you did before." Tor Books http://redteamblues.com. Signed copies at Dark Delicacies (US): and Forbidden Planet (UK): https://forbiddenplanet.com/385004-red-team-blues-signed-edition-hardcover/.
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"Chokepoint Capitalism: How to Beat Big Tech, Tame Big Content, and Get Artists Paid, with Rebecca Giblin", on how to unrig the markets for creative labor, Beacon Press/Scribe 2022 https://chokepointcapitalism.com
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"Attack Surface": The third Little Brother novel, a standalone technothriller for adults. The Washington Post called it "a political cyberthriller, vigorous, bold and savvy about the limits of revolution and resistance." Order signed, personalized copies from Dark Delicacies https://www.darkdel.com/store/p1840/Available_Now%3A_Attack_Surface.html
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"How to Destroy Surveillance Capitalism": an anti-monopoly pamphlet analyzing the true harms of surveillance capitalism and proposing a solution. https://onezero.medium.com/how-to-destroy-surveillance-capitalism-8135e6744d59?sk=f6cd10e54e20a07d4c6d0f3ac011af6b) (signed copies: https://www.darkdel.com/store/p2024/Available_Now%3A__How_to_Destroy_Surveillance_Capitalism.html)
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"Little Brother/Homeland": A reissue omnibus edition with a new introduction by Edward Snowden: https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250774583; personalized/signed copies here: https://www.darkdel.com/store/p1750/July%3A__Little_Brother_%26_Homeland.html
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"Poesy the Monster Slayer" a picture book about monsters, bedtime, gender, and kicking ass. Order here: https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781626723627. Get a personalized, signed copy here: https://www.darkdel.com/store/p2682/Corey_Doctorow%3A_Poesy_the_Monster_Slayer_HB.html#/.
Upcoming books (permalink)
- Enshittification: Why Everything Suddenly Got Worse and What to Do About It, Farrar, Straus, Giroux, October 7 2025
https://us.macmillan.com/books/9780374619329/enshittification/ -
Unauthorized Bread: a middle-grades graphic novel adapted from my novella about refugees, toasters and DRM, FirstSecond, 2026
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Enshittification, Why Everything Suddenly Got Worse and What to Do About It (the graphic novel), Firstsecond, 2026
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The Memex Method, Farrar, Straus, Giroux, 2026
Colophon (permalink)
Today's top sources:
Currently writing:
- Enshittification: a nonfiction book about platform decay for Farrar, Straus, Giroux. Status: second pass edit underway (readaloud)
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A Little Brother short story about DIY insulin PLANNING
Latest podcast: Nimby and the D-Hoppers CONCLUSION https://craphound.com/stories/2025/04/13/nimby-and-the-d-hoppers-conclusion/
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