As a semi-functioning adult, I am sympathetic to the argument that the term “enshittification,” while accurate, is also too vulgar of a term in some settings. It’s one thing to use it on Hacker News, but I personally wouldn’t use this term at church or when talking to K-12 students. Not everything can be PG-13 all the time; sometimes we need G-rated language.
There needs to be a more professional-sounding, G-rated term that describes the degradation of quality of software services.
If I was Apple or Microsoft, convincing people to use the term “enshittification” is actually the best possible outcome.
Nobody can use it in a TV ad.
Nobody can use it in political messaging.
Nobody can use it in G-rated settings.
Nobody can use it in a party platform.
Nobody can use it on the debate stage.
Nobody can use it in marketing on why they are better.
Nobody can use it in a courtroom without being accused of bias.
Nobody can use it who is generally soft-spoken or has strong cultural inhibitions.
The term itself silences speech. Anyone who calls this out is labeled a prude, which is perfect from a corporate planning point of view.
The only possible better outcome would be to use the term “assholeification” or something stronger. Call it “companies fucking with consumers” - that’s even better from a PR perspective.
Regardless of whether the word is vulgar, I often see it thrown around as a meme that has became overused. Even if the original phrase used different words, they will become less and less meaningful once they start appearing in every other comment thread.
You're overstating the impact of the term. No one is going to change the world or overturn the status quo or shift the dominant paradigm by using slightly vulgar language. The only value it has is in the catharsis it provides by comparing something to shit. It isn't a technical term (even though it used to masquerade as one.), it's evocative, so let's be honest. People just like saying things they don't like are shit. It's snark. It's weirdly the only kind of snark that gets past HN's filter.
And since "enshittification" is applied to everything now, and no longer refers to the specific context for which it was coined, we can say we're witnessing the enshittification of enshittification itself.
You’re underestimating how much this stuff matters. There’s an old George Carlin bit about “soft language” that is very relevant here:
“Americans have trouble facing the truth, so they invent a kind of a soft language to protect themselves from it.”
There’s a reason why clickbait is a thing, it’s because if you don’t find a way to punctuate the noise then people don’t pay attention, and people’s brains are affected by the things that grab their attention.
Except that isn't what's happening here. No one is protecting themselves from uncomfortable truths by choosing not to use the word "shit" to describe anything and everything they don't like. People use vulgar language all the time, especially online. "Enshittification" doesn't move the needle either way, but it comes off as trying too hard to be edgy and it's well overdone at this point.
I mean, you accuse people of trying to "shift the narrative" if they don't like it. As if not using it is wrongthink to you. You frame "enshittification" in terms of class warfare and self-deception, and almost imply that using it is a revolutionary act. And that's weird. That's far too much emotional and political investment in what amounts to a poop joke.
It's done, please find another meme. I know you won't, but I wish you would.
Because people recognize dog whistles when they see them. Calling Adderall amphetamines is literally correct, the generic is "amphetamine salts." Nobody denies it and so there's no reason to point it out in a discussion except as a means to tie someone's medication to the existing negative associations people have with amphetamines/speed/meth.
Reply is absolutely relevant to the sub thread discussing freedom of expression by grownups. It also successfully makes a point. No dog whistle here, no conspiracy theory, no offense, no rude speech, no nothing that you can read as a bait. Sorry the intent was different.
Whether swearing sounds childish is a cultural convention, particularly in the case of such a mild swear as “shit.” My experience is that it is not something that carries this baggage you describe for the typical person. Of course we’re both commenting from inside our bubbles.
Neither here nor there, but in my cultural context (Anglo-Canadian, middle millennial) “shit” is usually considered one of the most vulgar swear words (second only to “fuck”) outside of the slurs.
I guess I did miss your point, I thought by “we” you meant us currently in this conversation here, instead of some other hypothetical situation. In that case, sure, it would be good to have a sanitized named to describe the thing.
Enshittification seems to have found resonance with the folks who engage with tech often, so I think it is a good term for us as. But maybe something like “abusive platform cash-in” would be a better name in other contexts.
Things that are “adult” or “mature” tend to reinforce the status quo and reduce the probability of change.
Think about why you dislike the word “enshittification”, it’s likely because the word is both very direct and is based on a swear word. These both give the word impact and switching to a word that doesn’t have these properties would likely have less impact and be less likely to catch people’s attention.
Digging even deeper there is also a class dynamic as swear words are considered lower class. I don’t want to write an essay so I won’t go in-depth but “adult” and “mature” could also be considered code for “imitating the upper class” as the upper class loves to protect its identity and uses these dynamics in their favor. Consider for example how, historically, dressing in a suit is both considered upper class and mature, but what function does a suit really have? The primary function is signaling to other people.
The point I’m making is that the upper class generally doesn’t want change, they want to keep their status and power. So many of the things we consider “adult” or “mature” tend to really be imitating the upper class and indirectly maintaining their power and the status quo.
