Google search images yields a stcok photo marketplace. Looking for used bedframe on kijiji yields hundreds of sponsored ads with warehouse discounts. Put youtube on paw patrol auto play: 3 videos later its a lady with action figurines trying to get my kids pumped about paw patrol toys.
Want to read a medical journal? Pay $130 per paper published, with zero going back to the scientist who wrote it.
Worse yet, if websites were stores, theyd be asking if they could see and take copies of everything in your wallet before entering, and follow you around after you leave while taking notes.
How tf did we get here? Who tf is even in charge of the "internet" and is there any possible way forward that isnt just giving money away for mediocre nothings
It has lost a lot of its spirit. Most people unfortunately don't seem to mind, and I can't see any of that changing until the public demands better and starts to boycott all these paywall and sponsorship sites. What we can always rely on are places like Phuks that are run by admins who refuse to sell out.