# Protocol Pulse V

*Alcohol, Illusions, and Internet Tyranny*

By [Roots & Rooks](https://paragraph.com/@rootsandrooks) · 2024-02-07

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I got recruited to run another newsletter, so expect some changes around here. Might be pivoting this publication somewhere else and/or adjusting the theme. So, if you have concerns… if you have ideas… or if you have questions… let me know!

In the meantime, [**keep an eye o**](https://paragraph.xyz/@protocolized)**n** Protocolized or [**get nerdsniped**](https://forum.summerofprotocols.com/) by its associated forum!

![](https://storage.googleapis.com/papyrus_images/d068af29e5bd29683c491afb99de85ab.jpg)

**Protocols in the News:**

*   Good governments support freedom of movement. But [the internet doesn’t](https://subconscious.substack.com/p/freedom-to-exit?r=a8jrh&utm_medium=ios&utm_campaign=post&fbclid=IwAR3rQ-XYgDc1Pnii70tiFbL_ojQGSUGhAhOWyI5TqAyS5IBfubMvGFVGDCY).
    
*   Is the [best business strategy](https://mirror.xyz/0x51665825742d7BDdDe2c24e4E48dF23662c24Ed5/PIDiktJyKdBgKOn-X1Umj0hCVDXaEM08-fflOF1e-YA?fbclid=IwAR03aKwHJVF02EnWxKb3KHO7B4p5zUG_1WQSydDgziygg-z3QsXMRvoFLg0) product-first, sales-first, or protocol first?
    
*   Josh Stark is on a roll with [another essay](https://stark.mirror.xyz/rkLEVz9p4r3ouusD-WCkWP_iVZYkZ0K7TFkzeRfiXCU?fbclid=IwAR2pEyFeqiPgjmR3W8riHbAQBNGME_Mk-EErmxJEgWLWwWCidf5yN6e6rjc), this time about the importance of _hardness_ (certainty about the future).
    

**Other Things I Liked:**

*   A clever, short piece on Virtual Reality and how it [doesn’t take much to fool us](https://daringfireball.net/2024/02/simple_tricks_and_nonsense?fbclid=IwAR1RL9zle7zciNmZDJJ6z-BlOwZUJpH0cNU2PPuh1I6pNzACRUiwPgamIZk).
    
*   Is alcohol fading out of fashion? Or is this [just a fad](https://slowfutures.substack.com/p/ageing-and-tonic?r=i0i9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=email&fbclid=IwAR2O3ceTbRFFY5T_f8-IuTNglq4FT3ePSR0uQfzd2hnF6mfr-pWTh4Q0_RM)?
    
*   Tyler Cowen on how AI could spell d-o-o-m for [career wordsmiths](https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2024-01-25/ai-s-greatest-danger-the-humans-who-use-it?sref=htOHjx5Y).

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*Originally published on [Roots & Rooks](https://paragraph.com/@rootsandrooks/protocol-pulse-v)*