Urban man has lost his ability to cope with the natural world.
When the shit hits the fan and services breakdown it will only take a couple of days before they start dying off, very few will make it a week.

Charles, in some ways it is a shame you've never made your living at sea, a rolling ship, huge pools of phosphorescence, the occasional moments of sheer terror.

There's a reason Melville, London, Conrad, Ginsberg (to name just a very few) found such Inspiration there.

If it is not imposing I would humbly suggest reading 'The Great Green' by Calvin Kentfield.

This sort of raises an excellent point: if almost all work is eventually taken over by machines, the only alternative to mass suicide/murder/mayhem/collapse of civilization will be for most of humanity to be plugged into VR headsets and fed Soylent through a tube.

This is the greatest problem with people fond of bandying about the empty (but seemingly erudite) phrase 'late capitalism': a wildly naive, or willfully ignorant, grasp of basic human nature. Most people are not going to be out communing with nature if they no longer have to (or no longer can) make a living. They are not going to take up painting, or playing the flute, or really get into vegan cooking. For most of them it will be aimless indolence, which might only be made tolerable if there is an endless virtual ocean to swim in.

@3 - seconded. I did the reading version of a double-take at that; very un-Mudede.

Kids: Just Say No to internet-connected home assistants

Speaking of "the Pacific," let's hope our Alexia can recognize the sounds/vibrations of an imminent Tsunami and either re-broadcast those sounds or maybe MAYDAY! MAYDAY! alarms to the sleeping Masses.

One never sleeps deeply the first 3 nights in a new place. During those sleeps part of the brain remains alert for danger, this is a well known trait. Add to that notable noises to which you are unaccustomed, and of course you didn't sleep well. Give it a couple weeks, you'd be fine.

And WTF why did you bring an insecure "listening device" into your own home? Why put a bug in your domicile? ...^that you paid for^...
It's like people who purchase Nike t-shirts... you PAID them... paid THEM... to advertise ...for them. On your own body. Insane. They should be paying you. Hourly.

Why pay money to install a security risk in your home?

It's like the Uighurs in western China who have government-installed cameras above their front doors.. AND IN THEIR LIVING ROOMS. Except, you did it yourself. And PAID for the privilege.

I guess that really underscores the point of your essay.

Oh, and Alex is missing an YUGE Opportunity* here -- subliminal adverts for when they catch folks nodded off.
"If yur gonna Dream, why not let (yur Friend) Jeff Help You."

Sure, Jeff.
Why not?

*Bezzo's prolly 30 moves ahead of me already

"It's like people who purchase Nike t-shirts... you PAID them... paid THEM... to advertise ...for them. On your own body. Insane. They should be paying you. Hourly." --Treacle

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Social Engineering
fucking Works.

You can even tell them how to Vote.
Against themselves.

And they
Listen.

I believe I once cracked a joke about Mudede and Alexa.

Everyone and all of the things they call themselves.

1 - A bicycle, a kayak with cart, a pack raft, fishing gear, crab pots, a civilian navy?

Eh?