Of course, the root cause of enshittification is even easier to pinpoint.

Unregulated, hypercapitalism - or, even more to the source, the worship of unregulated, hypercapitalism.

There was a time, oh so many decades ago, when a business that made enough of a clean profit every year that the owners could pay for a house, two cars, their children's education, and a family vacation once a year was a glorious success.

Now, that business would be considered an abject failure. Worse, an investment to specifically be avoided.

Investors Business Daily defines any company that has not increased their profit margin by TWENTY FIVE PERCENT (25%), for at least THREE (3) QUARTERS IN A ROW as a "bad investment risk." I.e. A failing business. A business receding.

This mindset - that unsustainable, exorbitant growth is the minimum acceptable margin for basic success - means enshittification is unavoidable. Because people will cheat, lie, steal, and sacrifice their own grandmothers not to be considered a failure. Especially, when "being a failure" means you lose all your investors and lose your job