# Jason Samuel

> Personal website of Jason Samuel and home of The Sheep Code essays.

These are faithful text exports of the public website. Original dates, bylines, links, image references and italic bracketed notes are retained. Views are dated; later bracketed notes belong to the original passages. The canonical HTML links identify the pages to cite.


## Full text

- [Entire public site](https://thejasonsamuel.com/llms-full.txt): All 153 public pages in one text file; use individual Markdown pages for smaller contexts.

## Pages

- [JASON SAMUEL](https://thejasonsamuel.com/index.md): The official website of Jason Samuel. Essays and personal perspectives on technology, economics, society and life.
- [PERSONAL INFORMATION](https://thejasonsamuel.com/about.md): Jason Samuel, CEO of Zemuria Inc.
- [ESSAYS - THE SHEEP CODE](https://thejasonsamuel.com/essays.md): The Sheep Code: essays by Jason Samuel and guest authors on technology, startups, economics, autonomy, and life.
- [LEGAL INFORMATION](https://thejasonsamuel.com/legal.md): Legal information and disclaimers for Jason Samuel’s personal website and The Sheep Code essays.
- [LOVE NOTES](https://thejasonsamuel.com/lovenotes.md): Personal notes by Jason Samuel on love, his relationship, and everyday moments together.
## Essays

- [Startups need customers, not condescension](https://thejasonsamuel.com/startups-need-customers-not-condescension.md): Why startup support should connect founders with real industrial problems, paying customers and opportunities to build useful products.
- [A filter for long-term trust](https://thejasonsamuel.com/a-filter-for-long-term-trust.md): Jason Samuel reflects on vendor relationships, customer behaviour and the signals that help people build trust over the long term.
- [LLMs, hallucinations and claims that do not add up](https://thejasonsamuel.com/llm-hallucinations.md): A critique of claims about AI and filmmaking, examining language models, hallucinations and the need for technical explanations that add up.
- [Learning history through Rome](https://thejasonsamuel.com/learning-history-through-rome.md): Learning history through Rome: how an interest in one civilization can open up questions about empires, institutions and human progress.
- [What does it mean to be AI-native?](https://thejasonsamuel.com/what-does-it-mean-to-be-ai-native.md): Being AI-native means changing how you work. Jason Samuel considers productivity, practical experimentation and the skills that matter.
- [Food abundance and the invention of unhealthy eating](https://thejasonsamuel.com/food-abundance.md): An essay on food abundance, changing eating habits and why the availability of sweets and fried food tells only part of the story.
- [Relationships are choices, not ownership](https://thejasonsamuel.com/relationships-are-choices-not-ownership.md): Relationships depend on choice and trust. Jason Samuel examines possessiveness, personal freedom and the difference between love and ownership.
- [The freedom to choose what you wear](https://thejasonsamuel.com/the-freedom-to-choose-what-you-wear.md): Why the freedom to choose your clothes matters, and how rules about dress reveal wider struggles over autonomy, status and control.
- [India cannot outsource its technological future](https://thejasonsamuel.com/indias-technological-future.md): A case for building India's own technological capabilities, investing in ambitious engineering and taking the country's AI future seriously.
- [Indian startups need not copy Silicon Valley](https://thejasonsamuel.com/indian-startup-originality.md): Indian startups face their own customers, constraints and opportunities. An argument for building from those realities instead of copying Silicon Valley.
- [Cities, capital and the freedom to earn](https://thejasonsamuel.com/cities-capital-and-the-freedom-to-earn.md): Jason Samuel explores cities, economic opportunity and the freedom to earn, questioning attitudes that romanticise hardship and poverty.
- [Encryption, engineering priorities and wasted talent](https://thejasonsamuel.com/engineering-priorities.md): An essay on encryption, AI-assisted development and the engineering priorities that determine whether technical talent is used well.
- [If You Replace Every Part of Yourself, Are You Still You?](https://thejasonsamuel.com/are-you-still-you.md): Consciousness, continuity, mind uploading, and what it means to survive when every part of yourself can be replaced.
- [What does a government white paper actually tell us?](https://thejasonsamuel.com/government-white-papers.md): What government white papers can tell us, how they frame public debate and why readers should examine their purpose as well as their claims.
- [Democracy does not require voters to agree with you](https://thejasonsamuel.com/democracy-and-disagreement.md): Democracy includes voters who disagree with you. An essay on electoral choices, political persuasion and the limits of dismissing the electorate.
- [Natural is not a moral standard](https://thejasonsamuel.com/natural-is-not-a-moral-standard.md): A critique of treating naturalness as a moral standard, exploring food, technology and the assumptions behind appeals to nature.
- [Is Fraud a Tax on Ambition?](https://thejasonsamuel.com/fraud-is-a-tax-on-ambition.md): How capital, opportunity, and risk-taking can attract both builders and conmen. An essay on fraud and economic ambition by Jason Samuel.
- [An election is not a fan club](https://thejasonsamuel.com/an-election-is-not-a-fan-club.md): An argument for judging elections through governance and public outcomes, rather than treating political allegiance as membership in a fan club.
- [Capitalism and the politics of activism](https://thejasonsamuel.com/capitalism-and-the-politics-of-activism.md): Jason Samuel examines capitalism, consumer power and political activism, asking how economic incentives shape the causes people support.
- [Professional associations and the power they protect](https://thejasonsamuel.com/professional-associations.md): An essay questioning the incentives of professional associations and the tension between protecting members and serving the wider public.
- [Why I criticise the religion I was born into](https://thejasonsamuel.com/criticising-my-religion.md): A personal critique of inherited religion, religious authority and the reasons Jason Samuel questions the tradition he was born into.
- [Was Agriculture Ever Natural?](https://thejasonsamuel.com/was-agriculture-ever-natural.md): Agriculture as human engineering: a critique of going back to nature and a case for building more productive food systems.
- [“All men” sounds different when it is your daughter](https://thejasonsamuel.com/all-men-and-your-daughter.md): An essay on how men discuss women's safety, and why their response to generalisations can change when they imagine their own daughters at risk.
- [Should Adults Be Free to Ruin Themselves?](https://thejasonsamuel.com/freedom-to-ruin-yourself.md): Adult choices and adult consequences: a case for regulating gambling operators while protecting families and preserving individual autonomy.
- [What films teach us without saying it](https://thejasonsamuel.com/what-films-teach-us-without-saying-it.md): How films carry political and cultural messages without stating them directly, and why those messages matter beyond entertainment.
- [Trust, secrets and divided loyalties](https://thejasonsamuel.com/trust-secrets-and-divided-loyalties.md): Trust, secrecy and divided loyalties: an essay on the rules people use to hold organisations and personal relationships together.
- [Data centres, water and the costs of progress](https://thejasonsamuel.com/data-centres-and-water.md): An essay on data centres, water use and the costs of technological progress, questioning how society weighs infrastructure against its benefits.
- [AI, layoffs and the jobs that existed in between](https://thejasonsamuel.com/ai-and-in-between-jobs.md): Jason Samuel considers AI, layoffs and the kinds of work created between older systems and the technologies that may replace them.
- [Entertainers, patrons and the illusion of independence](https://thejasonsamuel.com/entertainers-and-patrons.md): From court entertainers to online creators, an essay on patrons, audiences and the economic limits of creative independence.
- [Why Should Every Manufacturer Buy the Same Tools?](https://thejasonsamuel.com/shared-design-consortium.md): A proposal for manufacturer-owned design consortiums: shared software, specialized talent, and more affordable access to engineering tools.
- [Cinema and the policing of women’s clothes](https://thejasonsamuel.com/cinema-and-the-policing-of-womens-clothes.md): A critique of cinema's lectures about women's clothing, examining audience incentives, cultural messaging and the policing of personal choices.
- [Exploitation, gig work and the comfortable middle](https://thejasonsamuel.com/gig-work-and-exploitation.md): An essay on gig work, exploitation and class interests, asking how comfortable consumers and businesses account for the labour they depend on.
- [What Happens When the Social Contract Breaks?](https://thejasonsamuel.com/the-social-contract.md): On technology, dignity, and what happens when people are priced out of the social contract. An essay by Jason Samuel.
- [Must everyone pick a side?](https://thejasonsamuel.com/must-everyone-pick-a-side.md): Must every disagreement require choosing a side? Jason Samuel explores centrism, moral pressure and the limits of political binaries.
- [Abortion and the frameworks behind our disagreements](https://thejasonsamuel.com/abortion-and-disagreement.md): An essay on the frameworks behind abortion disagreements, exploring how beliefs, evidence and cultural narratives shape opposing positions.
- [Learning to love](https://thejasonsamuel.com/learning-to-love.md): Jason Samuel reflects on learning to love yourself and others, and on the emotional work involved in building caring relationships.
- [Political disagreement and the limits of tolerance](https://thejasonsamuel.com/political-tolerance.md): An essay on political disagreement, tolerance and the consequences of violence, with later bracketed notes on the original argument.
- [A school, its alumni and misplaced priorities](https://thejasonsamuel.com/school-alumni-priorities.md): A personal account of working with a former school, examining alumni involvement, educational priorities and institutional responsibility.
- [Food abundance and nostalgia](https://thejasonsamuel.com/food-abundance-and-nostalgia.md): Food abundance changes what people worry about. An essay questioning nostalgia for earlier diets and the assumptions behind it.
- [There is only medicine](https://thejasonsamuel.com/there-is-only-medicine.md): An essay on modern and traditional medicine, examining evidence, labels and how claims about treatments should be judged.
- [Paid promotion and disclosure](https://thejasonsamuel.com/paid-promotion-and-disclosure.md): Jason Samuel considers paid recommendations, advertising disclosure and the responsibility that comes with influencing an audience.
- [What a society owes its own citizens](https://thejasonsamuel.com/what-a-society-owes-its-own-citizens.md): An essay on citizenship, constitutional commitments and what a society owes its own people despite disagreements over government policy.
- [Raising curious children](https://thejasonsamuel.com/raising-curious-children.md): Reflections on raising curious children, making room for questions and paying attention to how younger people experience the world.
- [Personal assistants should not be a luxury](https://thejasonsamuel.com/personal-assistants-should-not-be-a-luxury.md): Why personal assistance should be more widely available, and how AI could extend conveniences that wealthy people have long enjoyed.
- [Software piracy and the Robin Hood defence](https://thejasonsamuel.com/software-piracy-and-the-robin-hood-defence.md): A critique of the Robin Hood defence of software piracy, examining responsibility, justification and the work behind commercial tools.
- [Borrowing, inflation and the questions a budget should answer](https://thejasonsamuel.com/borrowing-inflation-budgets.md): An essay on borrowing, taxation and inflation, asking which questions a government budget should answer about its economic choices.
- [The economics of a successful creator](https://thejasonsamuel.com/the-economics-of-a-successful-creator.md): The economics behind successful online creators: advertising, audience reach and the business models that turn attention into income.
- [Two ways to judge a company](https://thejasonsamuel.com/two-ways-to-judge-a-company.md): Jason Samuel reflects on two companies through personal experience, considering customer trust and how businesses treat the people who use them.
- [Quick commerce and the bargaining power of workers](https://thejasonsamuel.com/quick-commerce-workers.md): An essay on quick commerce, capital allocation and workers' bargaining power, asking how convenience and employment should be evaluated.
- [The Star of Bethlehem: A Symbol of Joy or Sorrow?](https://thejasonsamuel.com/starofbethlehem.md): A critical examination of the Star of Bethlehem as a Christmas symbol, questioning its use in holiday celebrations by analyzing its biblical connection to tragedy, death, and sorrow.
- [Hating Apple is not a technical achievement](https://thejasonsamuel.com/hating-apple-is-not-a-technical-achievement.md): A critique of reflexive Apple criticism, asking whether technology preferences reflect practical engineering choices or simply brand loyalties.
- [Workers’ rights, unions and political power](https://thejasonsamuel.com/workers-rights-unions-and-political-power.md): An essay on workers' rights, unions and political power, examining the tension between employment, economic development and governance.
- [The laddu controversy: evidence and political incentives](https://thejasonsamuel.com/laddu-controversy.md): Jason Samuel examines the laddu controversy through evidence, public narratives and political incentives, with the relevant report excerpt.
- [Hiring for a culture people understand](https://thejasonsamuel.com/hiring-for-a-culture-people-understand.md): Reflections from a hiring process on communicating workplace culture clearly and helping applicants understand the environment they are joining.
- [ARE YOU IN THE FRIENDZONE?](https://thejasonsamuel.com/friendzone_part1.md): A witty and raw exploration of the dreaded 'friendzone,' exposing the reality of unrequited love and the delusions that keep young men trapped in one-sided relationships.
- [A boycott needs economic power](https://thejasonsamuel.com/a-boycott-needs-economic-power.md): What gives a boycott influence? An essay on consumer spending, business incentives and the economic power behind collective action.
- [Making creative work sustainable](https://thejasonsamuel.com/making-creative-work-sustainable.md): An essay on sustaining creative work, the pressures of earning from an audience and the choices facing independent content creators.
- [Priors, uncertainty and Bayesian reasoning](https://thejasonsamuel.com/priors-uncertainty-and-bayesian-reasoning.md): A reflection on Bayesian reasoning, the choice of priors and why apparent patterns require care before drawing confident conclusions.
- [France’s left and the cost of an electoral alliance](https://thejasonsamuel.com/frances-electoral-alliance.md): Jason Samuel's account of France's electoral alliances, political trade-offs and the risks he sees in cooperation across ideological divides.
- [Immigration, public trust and the rise of the right](https://thejasonsamuel.com/immigration-and-the-right.md): An essay on immigration, public trust and political backlash in Europe, with bracketed notes addressing claims in the original argument.
- [An engineer should have something to show](https://thejasonsamuel.com/an-engineer-should-have-something-to-show.md): Why engineers should demonstrate what they can build, and how practical work can distinguish an applicant beyond a credential or job title.
- [Political loyalty is no excuse for violence](https://thejasonsamuel.com/political-loyalty-is-no-excuse-for-violence.md): An essay on political loyalty and violence, questioning the excuses people make for harmful behaviour when it comes from their own side.
- [The best self-defence is getting home](https://thejasonsamuel.com/the-best-self-defence-is-getting-home.md): A practical argument for avoiding confrontation and prioritising escape over pride when personal safety is at stake.
- [Give the film back to the filmmaker](https://thejasonsamuel.com/give-the-film-back-to-the-filmmaker.md): An essay on filmmaking as art, the demands of commercial success and the creative freedom available when expectations change.
- [Commitment is a practice, not a trophy](https://thejasonsamuel.com/commitment-is-a-practice-not-a-trophy.md): Commitment is built through repeated attention and involvement. Reflections on relationships, everyday effort and the limits of grand gestures.
- [Virtue signalling and the difference between attention and impact](https://thejasonsamuel.com/virtue-signalling.md): An essay distinguishing public displays of concern from meaningful action, asking how activism can be judged by its impact.
- [Religious extremism and the people who pay for the backlash](https://thejasonsamuel.com/extremism-and-backlash.md): An essay on religious extremism, Islamophobia and political backlash, asking who bears the consequences when extremists claim to speak for others.
- [A uniform civil code, seen from different sides](https://thejasonsamuel.com/uniform-civil-code.md): A uniform civil code considered from different perspectives, exploring the questions behind marriage, divorce, maintenance and inheritance rules.
- [Credentials do not buy an audience](https://thejasonsamuel.com/credentials-do-not-buy-an-audience.md): An essay on expertise, status and social media, arguing that professional credentials do not automatically earn an audience's attention.
- [The value of a real conversation](https://thejasonsamuel.com/the-value-of-a-real-conversation.md): Reflections on real conversation, listening and the value of connecting with people as more of everyday life moves online.
- [Employees are not bonded labour](https://thejasonsamuel.com/employees-are-not-bonded-labour.md): An essay on employee freedom, workplace expectations and the limits of treating a job as a claim over someone's entire life.
- [Why would anyone buy a loss-making news agency?](https://thejasonsamuel.com/loss-making-news-agencies.md): Why a news business might attract a buyer despite financial losses: an essay on media ownership, influence and incentives beyond profit.
- [Diversity is more than a hiring quota](https://thejasonsamuel.com/diversity-is-more-than-a-hiring-quota.md): An essay on workplace diversity, hiring practices and the organisational choices that matter beyond meeting a numerical quota.
- [Dowry and the contradiction of masculine pride](https://thejasonsamuel.com/dowry-and-masculine-pride.md): A critique of dowry demands and the contradiction between claims of masculine independence and expecting wealth from a partner's family.
- [The AfD and Europe’s political backlash](https://thejasonsamuel.com/the-afd-and-europes-political-backlash.md): Jason Samuel examines the AfD and Europe's political backlash, with later bracketed notes on claims and framing in the original essay.
- [Knowing where your food comes from](https://thejasonsamuel.com/knowing-where-your-food-comes-from.md): Reflections on knowing where food comes from, the people who produce it and how everyday constraints shape the choices people can make.
- [How an industry manufactures a talent pipeline](https://thejasonsamuel.com/industry-talent-pipelines.md): An essay on how industries shape demand for qualifications and careers, using compensation and expectations to build a future talent pipeline.
- [Pondy’s traffic conundrum](https://thejasonsamuel.com/pondys-traffic-conundrum.md): Jason Samuel considers Pondy's traffic problems, urban growth and the practical decisions that shape how people move through a city.
- [Waste management needs incentives, not virtue signalling](https://thejasonsamuel.com/waste-management-incentives.md): An argument for designing waste management around incentives and workable systems, rather than relying on individual virtue alone.
- [Why an agency’s profit disappears before the invoice is paid](https://thejasonsamuel.com/agency-profits-and-payments.md): Why agency revenue is not the same as profit: an essay on scaling service businesses, operating costs and the wait for customer payments.
- [Social media and the way we treat each other](https://thejasonsamuel.com/social-media-behaviour.md): An essay on social media's effect on everyday behaviour, questioning whether platforms that promise connection make people treat each other better.
- [The platform that farms your creativity](https://thejasonsamuel.com/the-platform-that-farms-your-creativity.md): An essay on platforms, creative labour and the incentives that turn people's ambitions to create into value for someone else's business.
- [A patent is not a substitute for execution](https://thejasonsamuel.com/a-patent-is-not-a-substitute-for-execution.md): A founder's perspective on patents, trade secrets and execution, questioning when intellectual property spending helps an early business.
- [Why a country needs ports](https://thejasonsamuel.com/why-a-country-needs-ports.md): A case for ports and maritime infrastructure, exploring the role of trade and logistics in a country's economic development.
- [When activism alienates the people it needs to persuade](https://thejasonsamuel.com/activism-and-persuasion.md): An essay on activism, persuasion and public reaction, with bracketed notes revisiting parts of the original argument and its framing.
- [Why a superconductor would change the world](https://thejasonsamuel.com/why-a-superconductor-would-change-the-world.md): An essay exploring why a practical room-temperature superconductor could matter for technology, energy and the systems built around electricity.
- [The operations behind an ecommerce business](https://thejasonsamuel.com/the-operations-behind-an-ecommerce-business.md): The work behind an ecommerce business: an essay on India's online shoppers, operational constraints and the systems needed to serve customers.
- [Whiteboards, calendars and a two-phone experiment](https://thejasonsamuel.com/whiteboards-and-two-phones.md): A personal experiment with whiteboards, calendars and two phones, exploring attention, organisation and how to make space for focused work.
- [Why I say no to college invitations](https://thejasonsamuel.com/why-i-say-no-to-college-invitations.md): Why Jason Samuel declines some college invitations, and what he looks for in institutions, speaking engagements and educational priorities.
- [India’s AI ambitions and the talent question](https://thejasonsamuel.com/indias-ai-ambitions-and-the-talent-question.md): An early reflection on India's AI ambitions, the availability of engineering talent and the conditions needed to build technological capability.
- [The financial conversation every couple needs](https://thejasonsamuel.com/couples-and-finances.md): An essay on the financial conversations couples need, covering expectations, family obligations and how partners approach money together.
- [Women, work and the trade-offs behind policy](https://thejasonsamuel.com/women-work-and-the-trade-offs-behind-policy.md): An essay on women, STEM and work, exploring how policy choices interact with opportunity, preferences and the trade-offs families face.
- [Human progress is a continuing transformation](https://thejasonsamuel.com/human-progress.md): Human progress as a continuing transformation: reflections on technology, expanding capabilities and how people adapt to what they build.
- [The limits of the onsite dream](https://thejasonsamuel.com/the-limits-of-the-onsite-dream.md): A critique of the onsite dream in IT services, examining career expectations and the limits of relying on an overseas assignment.
- [What women go through during a groom search](https://thejasonsamuel.com/what-women-go-through-during-a-groom-search.md): An essay on the experiences of women during a groom search, questioning the expectations and assumptions that shape arranged marriage discussions.
- [Playing the hand you were given](https://thejasonsamuel.com/playing-the-hand-you-were-given.md): Using a card game as a metaphor, Jason Samuel reflects on circumstance, agency and making decisions with the opportunities you have.
- [Crime, punishment and the people we romanticise](https://thejasonsamuel.com/crime-and-punishment.md): Jason Samuel's views on crime, punishment and the public figures people romanticise, restored from the original Instagram stories.
- [Layoffs begin with management decisions](https://thejasonsamuel.com/layoffs-begin-with-management-decisions.md): An argument that layoffs should prompt scrutiny of management, hiring decisions and the responsibility of leaders who planned the workforce.
- [What real customer feedback taught us](https://thejasonsamuel.com/what-real-customer-feedback-taught-us.md): Lessons from launching a course and listening to early customers, including feedback, platform problems and improvements to the learning experience.
- [The trade-offs behind paper straws](https://thejasonsamuel.com/the-trade-offs-behind-paper-straws.md): An essay questioning paper straws and the trade-offs behind environmental policies, with a bracketed note on the original argument.
- [How engineering education manufactures resources](https://thejasonsamuel.com/engineering-education.md): A critique of engineering education, examining practical skills, assessment and the incentives that turn students into an industry's resources.
- [Know your company’s burn rate and runway](https://thejasonsamuel.com/know-your-companys-burn-rate-and-runway.md): An essay on understanding a company's burn rate and runway, and paying attention to operational signals when assessing its financial position.
- [The professional–managerial class and political power](https://thejasonsamuel.com/professional-managerial-class.md): An essay on the professional-managerial class, its place in economic institutions and the political influence associated with its role.
- [The appeal of the men who sell masculinity](https://thejasonsamuel.com/the-appeal-of-the-men-who-sell-masculinity.md): An essay on the appeal of online masculinity figures, with bracketed notes addressing allegations and claims in the original text.
- [Encryption, privacy and the demand for access](https://thejasonsamuel.com/encryption-and-privacy.md): An essay on encryption, privacy and demands for access, examining the conflict between secure communication and state oversight.
- [A startup’s first job is to build](https://thejasonsamuel.com/a-startups-first-job-is-to-build.md): A case for product startup founders to focus on building, questioning outsourcing advice and the need to develop capability inside the company.
- [The reality behind the service-industry engineering job](https://thejasonsamuel.com/service-industry-engineering.md): An essay on service-industry engineering careers, the gap between educational expectations and work, and what it means to build technical ability.
- [Re-Examining the License Raj](https://thejasonsamuel.com/re-examining-the-license-raj.md): The Perspectivist and Jason Samuel revisit the License Raj, protectionism, and the historical context of India’s economic development.
- [Cheap capital, overhiring and the layoff cycle](https://thejasonsamuel.com/cheap-capital-and-layoffs.md): Jason Samuel examines cheap capital, hiring booms and layoffs, connecting workforce decisions to the financial conditions surrounding companies.
- [Moonlighting, contracts and the work you own](https://thejasonsamuel.com/moonlighting-contracts-and-the-work-you-own.md): An essay on moonlighting, employment contracts and ownership of work, exploring the boundaries between a job and an employee's other activities.
- [The Dangerous Dance](https://thejasonsamuel.com/the-dangerous-dance.md): The Perspectivist explores India’s economic policies, regional inequality, and the middle-income trap. Edited by Jason Samuel.
- [A democracy needs credible opposing media](https://thejasonsamuel.com/a-democracy-needs-credible-opposing-media.md): An argument for credible opposing media in a democracy, examining editorial standards, political loyalties and the cost of losing public trust.
- [Science survives by being challenged](https://thejasonsamuel.com/science-survives-by-being-challenged.md): A defence of questioning scientific claims, distinguishing the scientific process from the personalities and authority of individual researchers.
- [Why Europe is turning to the right](https://thejasonsamuel.com/why-europe-is-turning-to-the-right.md): Jason Samuel's earlier analysis of Europe's rightward turn, examining uncertainty, political identity and the appeal of conservative responses.
- [Who benefits from the degree you are told to choose?](https://thejasonsamuel.com/choosing-a-degree.md): An essay on career counselling, educational incentives and who benefits when students are encouraged to choose particular degrees.
- [Strangulation with Compliances](https://thejasonsamuel.com/strangulation-with-compliances.md): Jason Samuel examines startup regulation, employment rules, and the compliance burdens facing Indian entrepreneurs.
- [Abortion, state power and the missing middle](https://thejasonsamuel.com/abortion-state-power-and-the-missing-middle.md): An essay on abortion, state power and political polarisation, with bracketed notes revisiting claims in the original discussion.
- [What if we treated a college education like a service we bought?](https://thejasonsamuel.com/college-as-a-service.md): What would change if students treated college as a service they purchased? An essay on educational promises, accountability and value.
- [Can you start a startup?](https://thejasonsamuel.com/canyoustartastartup.md): An insightful essay by Jason Samuel on the challenges and mindset needed for entrepreneurship, offering personal experiences and practical advice for aspiring startup founders.
- [What screens take away from a child’s imagination](https://thejasonsamuel.com/screens-and-imagination.md): Reflections on screens, observational learning and a child's imagination, asking how the surrounding environment shapes early experiences.
- [Political organising happens on the ground](https://thejasonsamuel.com/political-organising-happens-on-the-ground.md): An essay on political organising beyond social media, exploring local relationships and the work required to reach people on the ground.
- [The television and the child’s imagination](https://thejasonsamuel.com/the-television-and-the-childs-imagination.md): An essay on television, behavioural psychology and children's imagination, reflecting on how media and conversation shape attention.
- [The social psychology behind a political message](https://thejasonsamuel.com/political-message-psychology.md): An essay on political messaging and social psychology, examining how appeals to family, culture and fear can influence a wider audience.
- [A political alternative needs a plan](https://thejasonsamuel.com/political-alternatives.md): What should a political alternative offer? A proposal for measurable goals, a costed budget and a capable team.
- [Skills, fitness and the comparison trap](https://thejasonsamuel.com/fitness-and-comparison.md): On skills, fitness and social comparison, with qualifications about the statistics used to describe attraction.
- [Falling fertility and the cost of raising a child](https://thejasonsamuel.com/fertility-and-family-costs.md): On falling fertility, the cost of raising children and the public services families need.
- [BluSmart: The Warning Signs Behind an Investment Promise](https://thejasonsamuel.com/blusmart-warning.md): A December 2023 warning about BluSmart’s investment programme, funding, promised returns and the risks to investors.
- [Learning AI starts with taking notes](https://thejasonsamuel.com/learning-ai.md): An introductory AI learning exercise built around research, handwritten notes and practical assignments.
- [The small business economy we underestimate](https://thejasonsamuel.com/small-business-economy.md): Why small businesses matter to livelihoods, local demand and India’s economic ambitions.
- [When a small transaction freezes an entire bank account](https://thejasonsamuel.com/bank-account-freezes.md): A historical account of small transactions triggering bank-account freezes, and the difficulties faced by customers.
- [Viral fame and the machinery of outrage](https://thejasonsamuel.com/viral-fame-and-outrage.md): On TTF, risky riding, media attention and the distinction between accountability and a public pile-on.
- [Learning engineering beyond the service-company job](https://thejasonsamuel.com/learning-real-engineering.md): On engineering skills, service-company careers and the importance of continuing to learn mathematics and programming.
- [The environmental cost of replacing a plastic bag](https://thejasonsamuel.com/plastic-bag-trade-offs.md): Examining the environmental trade-offs of replacing plastic bags, including the limits of lifecycle comparisons.
- [Reading research beyond the headline](https://thejasonsamuel.com/reading-research.md): On experiments, causation, research methods and the questions worth asking beyond a study’s headline.
- [Hiring through conversations instead of job boards](https://thejasonsamuel.com/hiring-through-conversations.md): A perspective on finding talent through conversations and observing how people think.
- [When outrage becomes a media business](https://thejasonsamuel.com/outrage-as-a-business.md): A critique of media incentives and the business of turning public figures and controversy into attention.
- [The wedding photography problem that starts after the wedding](https://thejasonsamuel.com/wedding-photography.md): Finding a business opportunity in the delays and delivery problems that follow wedding photography.
- [A founder's publicity is not a business result](https://thejasonsamuel.com/founder-publicity.md): On the gap between a founder’s public image and business results, and why claims need evidence.
- [The dating app that needs you to stay single](https://thejasonsamuel.com/dating-app-incentives.md): A critique of dating-app retention incentives and the difference between commercial incentives and proven behaviour.
- [Go back to basics and take notes](https://thejasonsamuel.com/back-to-basics.md): An invitation to rebuild learning habits through basic mathematics, research, reading and handwritten notes.
- [What if every child could take a different path through education?](https://thejasonsamuel.com/personalised-education.md): A proposal for personalised learning paths, flexible assessment and education shaped around a child’s curiosity.
- [Read aloud with your children](https://thejasonsamuel.com/reading-with-children.md): An argument for reading aloud with children and making books part of everyday learning.
- [What the gym changes beyond your body](https://thejasonsamuel.com/what-the-gym-changes.md): A personal argument about training, confidence and persistence, with a qualification about pain and masculinity.
- [Teaching children to solve problems and think ahead](https://thejasonsamuel.com/teaching-children-to-think.md): Ideas about mathematics, strategy and independent learning, with qualifications on responding to children’s needs.
- [Opening the film industry to independent creators](https://thejasonsamuel.com/independent-film-creators.md): A proposal for funding and mentoring independent filmmakers through cohorts and original regional productions.
- [The productivity tool is not the work](https://thejasonsamuel.com/productivity-tools.md): On the excitement of switching productivity tools and judging a workflow by the work it helps complete.
- [The industry that pushed internet technology forward](https://thejasonsamuel.com/adult-industry-and-tech.md): A historical argument about the adult industry’s influence on technology adoption, with questions about causal claims.
- [A billion people are not a billion paying customers](https://thejasonsamuel.com/indias-paying-market.md): Why population and internet access alone cannot establish a startup’s paying market in India.