Sasha Lantukh

Progress is never free, and it can’t be stopped.

April 17, 2026

I noticed something odd about how “progress” is being done recently.

To get bigger system gains, rules are often made for whole populations instead of thinking about the individual. The result is lots of small annoyances for everyone: cookie banners, stop/start engines, attached plastic caps, paper straws.

On paper it looks efficient. For each person it feels small. But when you multiply it by millions of people, the total frustration is huge compared to the real benefit.

Progress is never free and it can’t be stopped. This is a divine law.

But there should be a simple rule: don’t improve systems in a way that makes everyday experience worse for everyone just to make numbers look better. If it only works by spreading small pain across all users, it should be questioned.

Progress should make things better for each person, not just better on a spreadsheet.

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