Blindness and Compost

Let’s look fresh at an old idea, and useful path that is currently being blocked. Ideologies are frameworks for interpreting and navigating the world, the #mainstreaming “common sense” of rejecting them amounts to rejecting structured understanding. When people claim to eschew ideology, they default to the dominant paradigm, the #deathcult of #neoliberalism, without realizing it. … Continue reading Blindness and Compost

Critique the ideological blindness of the tech world

The story often revolves around the #geekproblem and deeper ideological and structural issues in the tech world. There are internal conflicts in open movements. An example i like to talk about is the UK Indymedia project as a case study of ideological and technical battles between groups with different visions for open media. #Encryptionists: Advocated … Continue reading Critique the ideological blindness of the tech world

Shifting tech to collaboration, accountability, and sustainability

For a nuanced take on the #geekproblem, we need to highlight challenges and cultural dynamics in tech development. A starting point is the support for standards as foundations, everything in tech is built upon layers of “open industrial standards,” which provide value and interoperability. Ignoring these foundations to create isolated systems is akin to “building … Continue reading Shifting tech to collaboration, accountability, and sustainability

Application 2025-02-032 Open Governance Body #OGB

Application 2025-02-032 Open Governance Body #OGB received The following submission was recorded by NLnet. Thanks for your application, we look forward to learning more about your proposed project.Contact namehamish campbellphoneemailhamish@visionon.tvorganisation nameOMNcountryUKconsentYou may keep my data on record Project code2025-02-032project nameOpen Governance Body #OGBfundCommons_Fundrequested amount€ 50000website synopsis A project designed to create a trust-based, decentralized framework … Continue reading Application 2025-02-032 Open Governance Body #OGB

Laying the groundwork for a future worth building

Tieing together the threads of agency, ecological awareness, and social cohesion helps to envision a transformative path forward for the #openweb. Focusing on “Us” Over “Them”, focusing on “us” rather than “them” is grounded in practicality. We have influence over our own communities and movements, while exerting control over entrenched corporate powers like the #dotcons … Continue reading Laying the groundwork for a future worth building

The Evolution of SocialHub

“the crew gathered around #SocialHub worked remarkably well for a while, organising good gathering, conferences and very useful outreach of #ActivityPub to the #EU that seeded much of the current #mainstreaming. But yes, it was always small and under utilised due to the strong forces of #stupidindividalisam that we need to balance. Ideas?“ From grassroots … Continue reading The Evolution of SocialHub

The “social shit” story is raw, real, and relatable

The metaphor of “shit” as both the cause of decay and a potential source of renewal is provocative and insightful. It captures the essence of the challenge we face in addressing #mainstreaming culture, where conversations to often get stuck in defensive and rigid negative thinking. Why social change online fails, is in part that terms … Continue reading The “social shit” story is raw, real, and relatable

#4opens vs. #4closed

The critical paths between governance, activism, and the ideological underpinnings of #FOSS, #opensource, and the #openweb. The problem, governance without “politics” which FOSS and opensource often ignore and block the politics, leading to governance models resembling feudalism where “better kings” may emerge, but the underlying structure remains inequitable. Without addressing systemic issues, projects replicate the … Continue reading #4opens vs. #4closed

Let’s build tools that reflect human flourishing

One of the strong #blocking forces is #mainstreaming objectives being imposed on non-mainstream projects. This is a strong recurring issue in alternative tech spaces like the #openweb and #Fediverse. This happens because people perceive mainstreaming as “common sense,” mistaking it for adding value. Over time, this mess erodes the radical, decentralizing paths, feeding people back … Continue reading Let’s build tools that reflect human flourishing

Grassroots Radical Media: A #4opens Path

The resurgence of grassroots radical media projects requires a return to foundational principles, particularly the embrace of #FOSS and #opensource practices. These principles align with the #4opens framework, which acts as both a lock and a key for building sustainable and accountable media networks. The Basics, Activism vs. Mainstreaming, where activism aims to resist and … Continue reading Grassroots Radical Media: A #4opens Path

We need a positive path for tech

The Fediverse, decentralized social networking, path is fundamentally built on trust and collaboration. This emphasizes that interactions, platform developments, and community guidelines prioritize shared values and respect, rather than being dictated by centralized controls, fear paths and governance. Why trust matters, it’s distributed, the #Fediverse’s open protocol, #activitypub thrives because people and platforms choose to … Continue reading We need a positive path for tech