This is a DRAFT as have not looked at this project deeply for a while. Look past what they say, look at what they do #4opens. The #4opens are a simple way to judge the value of an “alt/grassroots” tech project. It’s easy to become a #4opens project and join the #openweb path: So we…
The victim card in activism
There’s a pervasive and damaging cycle in activist and alternative communities that we need to recognize and break, the victimhood narrative. This is not about dismissing genuine struggles or the real problems we face (and let’s be clear, we all have these in abundance on alternative paths). What I’m talking about is the deliberate use…
Federating Metadata Flows: Bridging Folksonomy and Categories for the #OMN
These native #openweb activism based projects have been around for the last ten years. In the reboot of #Indymedia and the development of the Open Media Network (#OMN), the challenge of federating metadata flows sits at the heart of how people organize, distribute, and consume media in a decentralized, grassroots-driven native path. We’re navigating the…
#Fediverse, Definitions, and Building Activist Communities
The question of definitions, particularly around the “Fediverse” and its relationship with the ActivityPub protocol (AP), has become messy due to the influx of #mainstreaming people, this has sparked a lot of mostly unhelpful debate. Let’s be clear, there is no real “Fediverse” without #AP. Since Mastodon’s shift to AP, the entire Fediverse has been…
The #openweb, a partnership, not a nasty walk over
We are seeing a flood of #dotcons making their way into spaces built on #4opens principles. Their arrival forces us to consider the future we want, and if we can mediate this encroachment for a better path. Some perspectives on this: The #SocialWebFoundation (SWF) seems to fit into the first category—attempting to mediate between these…
Oligarchy, Monarchy, and the Future of Governance of the #OpenWeb
The governance model of the Social Web Foundation (#SWF) aligns more with oligarchy, where power is concentrated in the hands of a few, echoing the structures of monarchy more normally seen within the broader #FOSS movement. Both oligarchic and monarchic models may work for some traditional organizations, but they are not native to the organic,…
The metaphor of cat herding
The metaphor of cat herding is a useful and fitting when working with decentralized, independent actors who are resistant to collective action, especially in grassroots tech and activist communities. It reflects the challenge of getting people to focus, organize, and work toward common goals without losing their autonomy or devolving into chaos. With projects like…
The path out of this mess is in part social tech, we need to build this path
The current path of distraction’s and #stupidindividualism are pushing the cycle of pointless noise that is feeding into our inability to focus on real change. People are busy, swept up in distractions, and pointless pursuits to be the change and challenge they need to be. It’s a cycle of complacency with a bad outcome. Agitation,…
We need native #openweb media
The rebooted #indymedia project is a radical media initiative grounded in the #pga hallmarks, a trust-based network #TAZ (Temporary Autonomous Zone) alongside the #mainstreaming. Much of the groundwork has been done already, this push for #indymediaback had a setback during COVID, but with a fresh crew it’s can be ready for another reboot. Like the…
Corporate presence in the Fediverse?
The announcement from the #SocialWebFoundation is a corporate vision rather than something native, grassroots or revolutionary. Describing people as “users” who follow “influencers and brands” is a social mess, the commercialized, top-down paths that clash with the #4opens of collaboration, activism, and mutual aid path we build. On its current path this is a delusional…