I have just finished The Almsbag, and I cannot stop thinking about one central question the book raises: Does true power always flow through the same invisible channels – merely changing its outward form across the ages?
Peter Boge takes us on a journey from the tax tablets of ancient Rome, through the tithes of the medieval church, to the algorithms that now collect our attention, data, and compliance. "The "Almsbag" serves as a powerful metaphor: a vessel that once collected coins for the community, now collects our digital offerings.
But here is what struck me most: the underlying mechanism never seems to change. The tools evolve – from roads to laws to code – but the pattern remains constant:
Collection of resources (money, obedience, attention)
Control through systems that reward compliance
Belief in the legitimacy of the system
Peter Boge suggests that power structures are not invented anew; they are translated into the language of each era. The question then becomes: Are we simply offering our attention into the same old bag, just with a different label?
This resonates with me because I see it everywhere – in the platforms we use, the news we consume, the algorithms that curate our reality. We are not just users; we are contributors to a system that has been running for millennia.
I would love to hear your thoughts:
Do you agree that power flows through consistent channels across history?
Can we step outside this system, or are we always within it?
Does recognizing the pattern change anything, or are we still caught in the flow?
The book does not offer easy answers – but it does offer a lens. And once you see the lens, you cannot unsee it.
Looking forward to a rich discussion.
(No spoilers in this thread – feel free to refer to general themes without revealing plot details.)
I have just finished The Almsbag, and I cannot stop thinking about one central question the book raises: Does true power always flow through the same invisible channels – merely changing its outward form across the ages?
Peter Boge takes us on a journey from the tax tablets of ancient Rome, through the tithes of the medieval church, to the algorithms that now collect our attention, data, and compliance. "The "Almsbag" serves as a powerful metaphor: a vessel that once collected coins for the community, now collects our digital offerings.
But here is what struck me most: the underlying mechanism never seems to change. The tools evolve – from roads to laws to code – but the pattern remains constant:
Collection of resources (money, obedience, attention)
Control through systems that reward compliance
Belief in the legitimacy of the system
Peter Boge suggests that power structures are not invented anew; they are translated into the language of each era. The question then becomes: Are we simply offering our attention into the same old bag, just with a different label?
This resonates with me because I see it everywhere – in the platforms we use, the news we consume, the algorithms that curate our reality. We are not just users; we are contributors to a system that has been running for millennia.
I would love to hear your thoughts:
Do you agree that power flows through consistent channels across history?
Can we step outside this system, or are we always within it?
Does recognizing the pattern change anything, or are we still caught in the flow?
The book does not offer easy answers – but it does offer a lens. And once you see the lens, you cannot unsee it.
Looking forward to a rich discussion.
(No spoilers in this thread – feel free to refer to general themes without revealing plot details.)