From GitHub to Rooster Farm

A Journey Beyond the Algorithm — by Michel Portier

Writer · Teacher · Tech Critic · Uses a Lot of Tech to Explain Why This Is Bad · Future rooster owner

Why I Am Leaving The Netherlands

The Netherlands has been good to me. Suspiciously good.¹

After years of teaching tech, writing about tech, and complaining about tech using tech, it became clear that something had to change. Possibly my location. Possibly my browser tabs.²

Main reasons (subject to revision):

Too much Wi-Fi
Too many dashboards telling me how I feel
Too many notifications asking for attention I was already giving
Children learning to swipe before learning to climb
Too many opinions per square meter³

“It must be said that a worrying number of these opinions are my own.”⁴

Portugal promises fewer opinions per square meter. I intend to contribute responsibly.

The Paradoxes

Teaching Tech vs. Disliking Tech

I teach technology. I understand technology. I enjoy explaining technology.

I also believe technology has gone a bit too far and should calm down.

“This website exists to explain why we should probably use fewer websites.”⁵

Too Many Opinions vs. Having Many Opinions

I am leaving a country with too many opinions.

I am bringing several carefully curated opinions with me.

This is not hypocrisy. This is thought leadership.⁶

The Portuguese Rooster

A traditional Portuguese rooster will accompany me.

This was not optional.

Fig. 1 — The Rooster.

Wakes everyone up without an app
Does not accept feature requests
Runs on daylight
Cannot be muted

The rooster has no screen time policy. It enforces this aggressively.

The Kindergarten (and Why You Want to Be Here)

Yes, there will be a kindergarten.

No, it will not have an app.

Why this kindergarten is different

Founded by someone who understands technology deeply
Operated by someone who thinks children deserve less of it
I know exactly how educational software works. That is why we will not use it.

Behind the scenes, everything will be carefully thought through.

In practice, children will:

Play outside
Ask inconvenient questions
Not learn what a smartphone is until they are 16 years old
Learn things that cannot be shared on Instagram

Technology policy: No screens. No logins. No passwords. Me and my website are known exceptions.⁷

Ik Vertrek (Open Application)

I am not participating in Ik Vertrek.

This website merely exists in case someone from television is browsing.

Why this would be good television

Idealism
Overthinking
Opinions
A rooster with strong opinions

Suggested episode titles:

“We Bought a Dream and Forgot the Paperwork”
“The Internet Is Slow but the Opinions Are Fast”
“The Rooster Was Right”

No camera crew has been invited. Yet.

Testimonials

“Michel taught me to think critically about technology. TikTok disagreed.”
— Former Student

Michel encouraged independent thinking. I googled what that meant.”
— Former Student

“I do not understand the paradoxes, but I will wake everyone at dawn.”
— The Rooster

This plan is ambitious, confusing, and missing some paperwork.”
— Portuguese Bureaucracy

“Have you considered turning this into a documentary series?”
— Several People, Repeatedly

Exit Successfully Executed

Michel,

You taught us to understand technology.

You also taught us to question why we built it this way.

“May your Wi-Fi be weak, your mornings loud, and your opinions finally below the national average.”

This chapter ends. The next one is intentionally less efficient.

Footnotes & Self-Citations

Portier, M. (Various years). Leaving Without Logging Out.
Portier, M. (Ongoing). Explaining Things While Being Part of the Problem.
Portier, M. (Unverified). Opinion Density and Its Side Effects.
Portier, M. (Self-Citation). Yes, This Includes Me.
Portier, M. (This Website). The Central Contradiction.
Portier, M. (Conference Talk, Hypothetical). Thought Leadership as a Coping Mechanism.
Portier, M. (Exception Handling). Why This Website Does Not Count.