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I am stepping down as the CEO of Mastodon

blog.joinmastodon.org

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Re: I am stepping down as the CEO of Mastodon

#351

Post by pjc50 »

arjie wrote: post #95

> I steer clear of showing vulnerability online, but there was a particularly bad interaction with a user last summer that made me realise that I need to take a step back and find a healthier relationship with the project, ultimately serving as the impetus to begin this restructuring process. Many of these microblogging sites seem to be populated by people with extreme views. One of the pleasant things about old Inte…

What has happened to the group of close friends that I met over the years on Twitter is that we retreated to a Discord; but within that, we noticed that those who also stayed on Twitter maintained a much more angry, confrontational style and we ended up with a couple of them leaving as a result. It's viral as in smallpox.

> the microblogging sites seem like a completely flat layer. There isn't really a community sense there.

This used to form spontaneously around shared events and hashtags. But ultimately the culture war poison comes for everyone. Elon is just the highest profile example of someone who got rage-poisoned and then took it out on everyone else, and is now using the platform to automate rage-spreading. Like a crap version of 28 days later, infectious viral rage.

Re: I am stepping down as the CEO of Mastodon

#352

Post by jbs789 »

bakugo wrote: post #295
jrm4 wrote: post #289

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This feels very analogous to my experience with the place. As a Black person (who absolutely loves the idea and model), it's weird. Feels very much like a "you become what you hate situation," in my case, interacting with Black folks with whom I share probably like 97% similar views on just about everything -- and yet, (it's mild, no worries, but) I have been on the receiving end of the literal worst behavior I've ev…

> with whom I share probably like 97% similar views on just about everything That's exactly the problem, though. Political echo chambers with no diversity of thought ultimately cultivate the expectation that everyone must agree on every topic, at all times. As soon as you dare disagree with what the majority has decided is the "correct" opinion, you will be seen as the enemy.

I think his point is that we all have more in common as humans than differences, and yet the differences prevail, which is a shame (and unhealthy).

So we make our own choices about where we spend our time, and some of us simply disconnect.

Re: I am stepping down as the CEO of Mastodon

#353

Post by lynx97 »

LexiMax wrote: post #316
Karrot_Kream wrote: post #307

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think trying to divide social media into "incentivized" and "non-incentivized" places either takes a lot more rigor than anyone here is doing or is just futile altogether. Even Mastodon is filled with ragebait. I also don't think trying to build an identity around the style of social media you use, the way you're trying to do in your posting, is conducive to good social habits. Do you think creating an us vs them e…

Building an identity? Us vs them? What are you even talking about? If that was an attempt at trying to reframe this conversation using identity politics - politics you are well aware that HN doesn't handle very well - it was an awfully clumsy one. I don't see people who are addicted to social media but starving for real social connections as some other side of a debate. I see them as victims of an insidious social ex…

You are exaggregating. Not everyone has per-se bad experiences with social media. Its a tool, and like with many tools, the user has responsibilities. Hammers are incredibly hurtful if you never learn to not hit your hands with 'em.

I have a FB account since, what, 16 years or so. It has helped me to connect with people, it helped me to partially break out of my (disability-inflicted) social isolation. Heck, it even brought me and my partner of 14 years together. Yes, it also tiggered some rage at some times, but that does normal social interaction as well. People are people, and some people are plain assholes. I dont need facebook to be triggered by people.

Re: I am stepping down as the CEO of Mastodon

#354

Post by a96 »

mig39 wrote: post #201
michaelt wrote: post #131

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> With money you can always buy popularity easily I don’t know if Elon Musk is an example or a counter-example. Maybe both?

[flagged]

It's effective for buying popularity with a crowd that likes nazi salutes.

Re: I am stepping down as the CEO of Mastodon

#355

Post by vasco »

rcxdude wrote: post #346
vasco wrote: post #319

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Unfortunately that's what they wrote? What other interpretation could there be?

a) They used 'Black' as opposed to 'black', which often is used specifically to mean a particular culture around african-americans specifically, not just a signifier of skin tone. b) The charitable interpretation is that they are Black and that they share 97% of their views.

Its impossible to think you agree with 97% of any group without assuming everyone from that group thinks the same way. Even people from just one country don't think the same way due to color of skin, if we were to assume the point is only about americans.

Re: I am stepping down as the CEO of Mastodon

#356

Post by mothballed »

globular-toast wrote: post #330
edoceo wrote: post #293

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's possible for a person to be an absolute stupid asshole about one topic (children's well being) but right about other things (software). Should have just stayed in his lane. I admired this dude but those words are, kinda, punchable offense. TF with "voluntary" in there?!?

" " -- you, probably Also, if you're not sceptical about it, you should be able to explain to someone like Stallman (as someone apparently later did) why it's still bad for children. If you can't then you're just as "stupid", the only difference is you happen to conform to the current accepted belief on this particular matter.

[flagged]

Re: I am stepping down as the CEO of Mastodon

#357

Post by rckt »

Decentralisation on Mastodon is an illusion. For me a truly decentralised thing is where I am a node that transmits and can receive transmissions, like radios. When there has to be a server that's being administrated by somebody, this already puts me in a position where I depend on the people who own the server. This means that if for any reason these people don't like me, they can simply ban me and that's it. Basically the same caveat as with the corp social medias, but on a smaller scale. Mastodon is definitely an alternative to big corps, but it has the same flaws. I don't see it as a way the decentralised community should go.

Re: I am stepping down as the CEO of Mastodon

#358

Post by whstl »

deadbabe wrote: post #267
bigstrat2003 wrote: post #142

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Like the other poster said, there's nothing worth losing sleep over in the comments here. Some people trying to start flame wars about politics, and a guy who thinks it's funny to drop racial slurs. None of those is good (and they are all flagged to death which is good), but neither do they make this comment section some kind of cesspool that would show why one is correct to distance oneself from Mastodon.

Sometimes I really wonder what the crowd I interact with here on HN is really like. Are they true tech intellectuals, or are they people who wouldn't hesitate to hurl racial slurs if there wasn't the threat of being banned or flagged.

Plenty of people trying to hurl racial slurs here, but they're mostly all shadow banned and not really truly participating in the discussions.

Re: I am stepping down as the CEO of Mastodon

#359

Post by latexr »

rckt wrote: post #357

Decentralisation on Mastodon is an illusion. For me a truly decentralised thing is where I am a node that transmits and can receive transmissions, like radios. When there has to be a server that's being administrated by somebody, this already puts me in a position where I depend on the people who own the server. This means that if for any reason these people don't like me, they can simply ban me and that's it. Basica…

> When there has to be a server that's being administrated by somebody

And that somebody can be you. There are Mastodon servers operated by individuals for their friends or their small company. Anyone can host a server with their own rules.

Re: I am stepping down as the CEO of Mastodon

#360

Post by spacechild1 »

deadbabe wrote: post #267
bigstrat2003 wrote: post #142

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Like the other poster said, there's nothing worth losing sleep over in the comments here. Some people trying to start flame wars about politics, and a guy who thinks it's funny to drop racial slurs. None of those is good (and they are all flagged to death which is good), but neither do they make this comment section some kind of cesspool that would show why one is correct to distance oneself from Mastodon.

Sometimes I really wonder what the crowd I interact with here on HN is really like. Are they true tech intellectuals, or are they people who wouldn't hesitate to hurl racial slurs if there wasn't the threat of being banned or flagged.

I think very few people on this forum would qualify as intellectuals, most are just ordinary people. Now, some users certainly present themselves as Renaissance polymaths, but typically they just suffer from Engineer's Disease :)

Needless to say, even "intellectuals" can be racist.

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