When the world gets closer.

We help you see farther.

Sign up to our expressly international daily newsletter.

Already a subscriber? Log in .

You've reached your limit of one free article.

Get unlimited access to Worldcrunch

You can cancel anytime .

SUBSCRIBERS BENEFITS

Exclusive International news coverage

Ad-free experience NEW

Weekly digital Magazine NEW

9 daily & weekly Newsletters

Access to Worldcrunch archives

Free trial

30-days free access, then $2.90
per month.

Annual Access BEST VALUE

$19.90 per year, save $14.90 compared to monthly billing.save $14.90.

Subscribe to Worldcrunch
Dottoré!

If We Were All Conscientious Objectors

Our Naples-based psychiatrist imagines a world where all professionals could deny care on the basis of religious objection.

black and white photograph of a woman walking down a Neapolitan street, towards a large church.

A woman walks towards church in Naples

Ciro Pipoli/Instagram
Mariaterese Fichele

In Italy, sacred Catholic values are untouchable.

In fact, they are so untouchable that abortion clinics are falling like flies, forced to close because more and more gynecologists are so-called "conscientious objectors" — allowed to refuse to terminate pregnancies based on religious conviction.

But you know what I say to a country that would allow such a thing? I say okay, let's adapt!

To the next pedophile, mafiosoor drug dealer who shows up in my office I will say: "Even if you are unwell I cannot help you because what you do is against my moral values."

And since we're making this argument, let me indulge in a few more whims.

Let's see... Maybe I'll start refusing to see men who abuse their wives, anyone who bets with scratch cards, not to mention all politicians and lawyers too!

At this rate I could spend my days twiddling my thumbs behind my psychiatrist's desk and still get my monthly check for the national health service.

I mean, I'm only objecting, it's only my conscience...

____________________________

Learn more about Worldcrunch's exclusive Dottoré! series here.

You've reached your limit of free articles.

To read the full story, start your free trial today.

Get unlimited access. Cancel anytime.

Exclusive coverage from the world's top sources, in English for the first time.

Insights from the widest range of perspectives, languages and countries.

Ideas

Look At This Crap! The "Enshittification" Theory Of Why The Internet Is Broken

The term was coined by journalist Cory Doctorow to explain the fatal drift of major Internet platforms: if they were ever useful and user-friendly, they will inevitably end up being odious.

A photo of hands holding onto a smartphone

A person holding their smartphone

Gilles Lambert/ZUMA
Manuel Ligero

-Analysis-

The universe tends toward chaos. Ultimately, everything degenerates. These immutable laws are even more true of the Internet.

In the case of media platforms, everything you once thought was a good service will, sooner or later, disgust you. This trend has been given a name: enshittification. The term was coined by Canadian blogger and journalist Cory Doctorow to explain the inevitable drift of technological giants toward... well.

The explanation is in line with the most basic tenets of Marxism. All digital companies have investors (essentially the bourgeoisie, people who don't perform any work and take the lion's share of the profits), and these investors want to see the percentage of their gains grow year after year. This pushes companies to make decisions that affect the service they provide to their customers. Although they don't do it unwillingly, quite the opposite.

For the latest news & views from every corner of the world, Worldcrunch Today is the only truly international newsletter. Sign up here.

Annoying customers is just another part of the business plan. Look at Netflix, for example. The streaming giant has long been riddling how to monetize shared Netflix accounts. Option 1: adding a premium option to its regular price. Next, it asked for verification through text messages. After that, it considered raising the total subscription price. It also mulled adding advertising to the mix, and so on. These endless maneuvers irritated its audience, even as the company has been unable to decide which way it wants to go. So, slowly but surely, we see it drifting toward enshittification.

Keep reading...Show less

The latest