Ep. 11: Enshittification - Show Notes

This week, we’re finally back from being sick. The four of us passed around a cold from hell that made it impossible to record, so sorry for the unplanned week long absence.

We pick it back up talking about Enshittification in digital platforms, how it was originally intended, but also in other places we see it. We don’t have a ton of solutions for this one that aren’t “reform the system as a whole,” but the connections to the people that ruined the things we loved for so long are kind of amazing, so you won’t want to miss this one.

Recommendations / References:

Doughnut Economics by Kate Raworth

https://bookshop.org/p/books/doughnut-economics-seven-ways-to-think-like-a-21st-century-economist-kate-raworth/c567b77a6aa8a1bf?ean=9781603587969&next=t

Contact Us:

Contact us with questions or ideas for other episodes at locallevelleftpod@gmail.com

This week we talk about the GEO Facility in Aurora and ICE in general. There are so many things that are messed up about the times we live in, but few are greater than the slave catchers / gestapo cowards that populate the worst agency in our government. The GEO facility is its own kind of hell as well that should be tossed to the curb, and it has always been that way. The good news is there are things we can do when they both constantly violate our constitutional rights. Come check it out.

Contact Us:

Contact us with questions or ideas for other episodes at ⁠locallevelleftpod@gmail.com

This week is part two of our personal experiences on running for office. We laugh some, Aly cries some, and we give more good advice if you’re looking to run for office based on our experiences.

Contact Us:

Contact us with questions or ideas for other episodes at locallevelleftpod@gmail.com

This week we give you some of our personal experiences in running for office. We have told you for several episodes now, “things are f***ed up, run for office . . .” So we figured it’s only fair to give you our cynical views on what we did. We laugh, we cry, we even talk so long we had to break this episode into two parts. Enjoy part one, and stick around next week for part two.

Contact Us:

Contact us with questions or ideas for other episodes at locallevelleftpod@gmail.com

This week, we talk about Sewer Socialism and how this version of socialism with such an unfortunate, but intentional name, is the source of so many things we know and love today. We also discuss how Sewer Socialism is something we should all focus on to help catapult (or trebuchet if you prefer) better communities and society as a whole into the future.

Show Notes:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sewer_socialism

Contact Us:

Contact us with questions or ideas for other episodes at locallevelleftpod@gmail.com

This is our last episode of 2025, although it will first air in early 2026. We recorded a special Christmas Eve episode where we chat about our personal yuck, yums, and holy f**ks of 2025. Trumps second term makes the list, ICE makes an appearance, and GEO Group also gets our disgust. We also talk about some happy things like different people agitating in different ways and lanes, the whole state of Minnesota, a graduated income tax going on the ballot in 2026, and many more things.

Show Notes

Bari Weiss wiki:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bari_Weiss

Other article showing her true colors:

https://dailytarheel.com/article/opinion-column-cbs-bari-weiss-journalism-bias-20251111

Contact Us:

Contact us with questions or ideas for other episodes at locallevelleftpod@gmail.com

This episode we talk about how AI is going to be a huge problem in our lives, and how it likely just serves to make billionaires more money and power. We also talk about how AI manifests itself in our schools, what teachers are doing to counteract it, and a couple simple things we can all do to keep AI in check in society in general.

Show Notes

Link to the book Shock Doctrine

https://bookshop.org/p/books/the-shock-doctrine-the-rise-of-disaster-capitalism-naomi-klein/7bc48ede0635cd6a?ean=9780312427993&next=t

Also check out your local library for this book.

AI isn’t paying off yet article, and may never, despite the blatant optimism of the market.

https://mlq.ai/media/quarterly_decks/v0.1_State_of_AI_in_Business_2025_Report.pdf

Clip of “Should Humanity Endure”

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/Xg6deHyHKKs

Georgia Power Article

https://apnews.com/article/georgia-power-data-centers-d15f7793c6b79444908ca8a7b68f7ef1

Contact Us:

Contact us with questions or ideas for other episodes at locallevelleftpod@gmail.com

In this episode we try to cover cell phones in schools and AI in schools, but we only get to cell phones. Cell phones in schools are causing a mental health crisis in our children. The research is clear—and conducted locally in Colorado—: cell phones should be no where near a child while in school. Test scores, attendance, bullying, and social interaction all improve when children don’t have access to their phones throughout their educational day.

So, what is to be done: take the phones away. We discuss what schools across Colorado are doing and what Aurora Public Schools should consider in its upcoming decision on a cell phone policy.

Show Notes

Article combining and citing many different studies on cell phones in schools and the effects on children and test scores.

https://digitalwellnesslab.org/articles/what-the-science-says-smartphones-in-schools/

Colorado School District 51’s cell phone ban policy and research by Dr. Brian Hill:

https://www.coloradoedinitiative.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/How-Colorados-District-51-Advanced-a-Unified-Cell-Phone-Policy-to-Enhance-Student-Learning-and-Wellbeing.pdf

Homestar Runner IMDB:

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2349968/?ref_=fn_i_1

Contact Us:

Contact us with questions or ideas for other episodes at locallevelleftpod@gmail.com