The Internet Is Now a Predatory Cesspit

The Internet Is Kind of a Predatory Cesspit Now

Stephen Diehl, a 90s kid, contrasts the early web—slow, quirky, and human—with today's internet, which he argues is an optimized machine for exploiting vulnerability. He describes how scams have moved from the periphery to the center, turning ordinary people into unpaid distributors in a vast grift economy. Diehl critiques the role of platforms, crypto, and AI in industrializing deception, and warns that the system's design makes misery a recurring revenue stream.