The Manifesto of Back to Nature Island
Also known as: Why I have a personal website.
Also known as an ever-changing amalgamation of thoughts and feelings about the state of the internet, its impact on people, and why it's important to detach in some way.
I think a lot of websites on here have their own manifesto of sorts and most of them have a similar message, but I think that goes to show how strongly people feel about having their own personal, non-commercial online space where they're free to express themselves. Corporations have made the internet their own little playground of profit for way too long now, the internet that was first built by people for people from all across the globe to connect and share real information and build communities. It is now bigger and faster than ever, yet it feels much smaller than before, is full of anti-people and anti-community practices, blander and more exploitative than ever, and perhaps worst of all, teeming with misinformation and the undermining of truth.
Not for a single second do I buy it when corporations like Facebook or Twitter claim to be "social networks that bring people together" as they're more interested in collecting our data, selling it, and modifying our behaviours to get us to stay as long as possible on their platforms. Basically, the users of these platforms aren't the consumer, they're the product being sold. All while giving us a very crappy and very limiting experience, known to some as the "enshittification". Now, there isn't some evil mastermind in these companies dictating their approach to be bad and ugly just because, but as it turned out, the crappy stuff makes people more likely to click and engage, and making people feel negative emotions brings in more money than making them feel good.
And honestly, it took me a long time, but at some point I asked myself, why do I stay on such platforms? Getting both a crappy experience and taken advantage of, I wasn't even having a good time anymore you know? (In part it was due to the sneaky engineering of those websites that hooks their users in incredibly addictive feedback loops) Realizing that was a crucial moment in evaluating what was important to me and how I wanted to spend my time online, and as I eventually realized, how I wanted to live my life. In today's world where the net is nearly omnipresent, it is not an exaggeration to say how one spends their time online reflects on their real life. And I wanted mine to be intentional, grounded, full of creativity and joy, and above all, fully my own.
Computer scientist Jaron Lanier, has said it in his book "Ten Arguments For Deleting Your Social Media Right Now" much more eloquently, knowledgeably, and optimistically than I could ever write on the topic, so this is a sincere invitation for you to read the book, even just a chapter summary of it. A personal website is hardly the only way one can have an independent existence online and push back against corporations, but it is the one that resonated with me the most. I look at every personal website, regardless of its simplicity or complexity, and I see a manifestation of its webmaster, their creativity, style, personality, the things that bring them joy or stimulate their mind. It's not only about being free to express yourself, it's a refusal to be caged, studied, categorized, and sold things to like the perfect little consumer corporations try to mold us into.
And I find it pretty amusing that the Neocities mascot is a cat, because the book above opens with an intro inviting us all to be cats on the internet; that is to stay true to ourselves in spite of all the corporate greed-induced craziness going on around us at all times, and to do so on our own terms.
All of this is born out of a deep passion and a belief in the internet's true potential. Not simply wanting to replicate yesterday's net, but to take from it what made it real and human and meaningful. A genuine desire for people to see beyond the few sites and apps that have become synonymous with the net and have an online experience that respects their time and humanity instead of the endless content rat-race that's going on today.
"But Bear, people are dying out there, surely the state of the internet isn't the most pressing matter right now " except it is important and also humans are multifaceted and can care about multiple things at once and also you wouldn't believe the role shitty corporate iternet plays into making the world a crazier and more paranoid place, so I think wanting to fight back isn't all that strange.
So I encourage you to go out there and explore the net beyond the Algorithm. Perhaps you'll go on the Neocities websites tab and click on a site that looks cool to you, and see what it has to show and tell you. Perhaps you'll find they have a links page and explore all the different sites they put there that cannot and will not be found on any conventional search engine, all unique and beautiful creations. Maybe you'll even make your own website and fill it with all the things that bring you happiness then proudly show it to your friends... and say yes, I did make all that. A space on the internet that is fully owned and lovingly crafted by you in whichever way you want. Doesn't that just sound beautiful?
