Why do people keep doing pointless self harm – news aggregation

There are hundreds (over the last 20 years likely thousands) of news, aggregation sites. It’s a common #dotcons model to enclose the “commons” people see free content and think I can capture that. The problem is news content looks like it’s free, but that’s because it’s “free” to spread, but it’s VERY expensive in human (and thus money) to produce the content. This side is never addressed in these failed tech projects.

We currently have #traditionalmedia all round the world pushing to be paid for aggregation and even search of their “product”. At #OMN and #indymediaback, we get round these issues as we add “value” by the #DIY labour of the meany people involved in the shared “commons” space. We are producing rather than “stealing” in the #mainstreaming view.

It’s normal that the top-down news aggregators are seen as parasites, and the bootem up aggregators as adding value. For a few years of #indymedia growth, #traditionalmedia was using #indymedia as a “news” source, this shaped the #mainstreaming agenda, adding value to both paths.

When the #openweb we were building was ripped apart by internal and external pressers and agenders, the #DIY value was captured by the #dotcons such as #Facebook and later #Twitter (when it left it’s open’ish path).

The first step away from the current mess is to recreate the “commons” to bring the value back from the #dotcons capture, this should be more possible now as we are building from the #Fediverse where this has already happened. What we do with this recreated “commons” is up to meany different groups/people, but let’s hold the #4opens and #PGA strongly in place to stop “common sense” enclosing attempts, which are constant pointless damage we need to work around.

To sum up, a key part of the #OMN is to recreate the data “commons” then it’s up to meany other groups to find useful things to do with this free to use non-commercial value. And yes lots of people will see the stupid path of enclosing this to capture the value for themselves, this is damage.

In capitalism, any non-owned value is seen as an opportunity to capture, enclosed and profit from. This is why we have copyleft licences in code, which is visibly failing and why we extend this to the #4opens to fail less 😉

This all comes down to the question of what we value. And for meany people, this is a blindness.

Thinking through composting the #techshit

The #openweb has many benefits, though it will not always be the right tool for all situations, there is a lot of mature tech available for privacy and control. The desire to mix these technologies comes from #mainstreaming liberalisms desire for social media to be private, rather than inherently public.

The decentralized #openweb and encrypted chat are obviously separate and should coexist without reproducing the mistakes of centralized #dotcons social media. Focusing on the #4opens and leaving hard privacy for individuals and groups in peer-to-peer encrypted chat is the “native” path.

Thinking through composting the #techshit. In our era of dead ideologies like post-modernism and neoliberalism, we need to build “bounded” projects that have clear boundaries, such as #4opens and #PGA, to keep us focused and resist #mainstreaming liberalism and right-wing ideologies. This helps us create a shared space of practice and direction for politics and technology. While “branding” can be powerful, caution is needed to not creating a sense of dogmatic tribalism in these movements #OMN

Good horizontalists understand theory comes from practice, and the basis of this is #DIY – working practice to build theory. Starting from theory lead’s to a dizzy mess that results in more #techshit to compost or academic wank. Instead. Building from grassroots DIY practices, such as #OMN, #Indymediaback, and #OGB, and then using theory from these practices.

We need to emphasize the importance of focus on the #openweb. Engage with this flow to practice activism and to avoid pushing mess.

What is the value of “bounded” projects

We need to build “bounded” projects because we live in the era of the #deathcult based on the dead ideologies of post-modernism and #neoliberalism. Both deny the possibility of the world we want to build. So “common sense” is not our friend.

The “boundaries” of #4opens and #PGA keep focus vs this “common sense”. We are lost without this.

The #OMN are building tools for the “other” that’s us. “Them” are hostile, especially if they don’t understand “they” are. This is #mainstreaming liberals, and right wing crew.

#PGA is about, horizontal giving us a shared space of practice, understanding and working for “politics” and the #4opens gives us the same for tech

They together create a boundary for us to focus, Without this we have a tendency to fight and create mess. So it’s a soft/pours “us” and “them” to provide focuses and direction. In a bad sense, it is the badges of the tribe. In a better sense, it’s the banners we fly at our gatherings, but this starts to sound a bit nationalist. So let’s not do this 😉

The subject of “branding”, flags, banners is a real balance, they have power… And we need power in horizontal movements.

This podcast is a interesting look at this https://media.blubrry.com/novarafm_radio_for_a/audiofiles.novara.io/acfm/2023/230212_ACFM_Trip_32_Myth_2.mp3 as background thinking.

Some of the #OMN projects

The #OGB project, stands for Open Governance Body. It is an initiative to create a governance body for the #fediverse, a network of decentralized social platforms that use the ActivityPub protocol.

https://unite.openworlds.info/Open-Media-Network/openwebgovernancebody explains the motivation, vision and goals of the #OGB, as well as some of the challenges and opportunities it faces. Please feedback.

activism.openworlds.info is a #fediverse instance that hosts activists and social movements. It uses Mastodon, a decentralized microblogging platform that allows users to post messages, follow other users and interact with them. The website is part of the Open Media Network #OMN, a project that aims to compost tech for a better world.

https://campaign.openworlds.info website is another fediverse instance that hosts people, organisations and groups working on or supporting progressive social change. It also uses Mastodon, a decentralized microblogging platform that allows users to post messages, follow other users and interact with them. The website is administered by info@visionon.tv.

Hamishcampbell.com this website, a filmmaker and activist who is interested in horizontal socialist economics and #openmedia projects. Showcases work and ideas as well as videos and campaigns. Am a part of the Open Media Network (#OMN), a grassroots initiative to nurture a #4opens decentralized and federated network of media platforms that share common #PGA values and principles

The visionontv project is a part of the Open Media Network (#OMN), which is a grassroots initiative to create a decentralized and federated network of media platforms that share common values and principles. Creating an internet distribution channel for alternative news, covering topics such as social movements, environmental issues, human rights and more.

What is my website for

http://Hamishcampbell.com my website, a filmmaker and activist who is interested in horizontal socialist economics and #openmedia projects. Showcases work and ideas as well as videos and campaigns. Am a part of the Open Media Network (#OMN), a grassroots initiative to nurture a #4opens decentralized and federated network of media platforms that share common #PGA values and principles

A vision of a more democratic and egalitarian society, where people have control over their lives and resources, and media is open and transparent. Feel free to explore the projects and contact me for collaboration or feedback.

The carnival was a reminder that resistance is possible

The Carnival Against Capital was a global day of protest that took place on Friday, June 18th, 1999. It was a response to the 25th G8 Summit, which was being held in Cologne, Germany at the time. The carnival was organized as an international day of action to protest against the capitalist system and the role of the G8 in maintaining it. The event was also known as #J18, and it was inspired by previous protests such as the Stop the City protests in the 1980s, Peoples’ Global Action (#PGA), and the Global Street Party (#RTS)

The main rallying cry for the Carnival Against Capital was “Our Resistance is as Transnational as Capital.” This was a call to action for people around the world to come together and resist the global capitalist system. The event was organized by a loose coalition of groups and organizations who shared a common goal of fighting against capitalism and its impact on people’s lives.

In London, a spoof newspaper was produced to promote the event, alongside other publicity. On the day itself, the carnival started with a Critical Mass bike ride, which saw cyclists taking to the streets to highlight the problems of car culture and promote alternative forms of transport. This was followed by an action by the Campaign Against Arms Trade, which aimed to draw attention to the role of the arms trade in perpetuating war and conflict.

Later in the day, a large march converged on the London International Financial Futures Exchange for a street party. The exchange was chosen as a symbolic target because it represented the heart of the global financial system. The street party was a festive and creative event, featuring music, dancing, and street theatre. It was also an opportunity for people to express their anger and frustration at the system that was causing them harm.

The Carnival Against Capital was not just limited to London. There were protests in over 40 cities around the world, including Barcelona, Montevideo, Port Harcourt, and San Francisco. Using then new technology, the protests were reported on the internet by independent media activists from London and Sydney, in a step towards the #Indymedia network. This was a significant development in the history of protest movements, as it allowed activists to bypass the mainstream media and communicate directly with each other and the wider public.

The legacy of the Carnival Against Capital lives on today. It was a powerful moment in the history of the anti-globalization movement and showed that ordinary people could come together to challenge the #mainstreaming globalist thinking. The event inspired many people to become involved in activism and to work towards a fairer and more just world. The carnival was a reminder that resistance is possible, and that another world is not only desirable but also achievable.

Please share this #openweb project widly thanks

The #OGB is focused on decentralized and autonomous models of governance for the #fediverse and #openweb groups. It aims to resist the imposition of traditional top down power structures and promote social change and challenge by involving community members in decision-making and empowering them to shape their “producer” communities.

The project will leverage existing open-source technologies and the #fediverse infrastructure, and will balance structure and flexibility to promote creativity, innovation, and sustainability. The project has three main subjects of discussion: 1) the tradition of working activist grassroots organizing, 2) the use of technological federation and ActivityPub, and 3) original thinking for grassroots #openweb producer governance. The project is bound by the #4opens and #PGA principles and will be conducted using #KISS online tools.

#ActivityPub is a protocol for decentralized social networking that is based on #openweb standards. It provides client and server APIs for creating, exchanging, and receiving content, as well as notifications and other activities. The protocol uses the #ActivityStreams vocabulary and defines key concepts such as Actors (profiles), Objects (content), Inbox, and Outbox to facilitate communication and interaction between users in a decentralized network.

By working together and finding working solutions, we can build a more sustainable, inclusive, and equitable #openweb for all

The #SocialHub and the #fediverse do not have to conform to traditional hierarchies and power structures. Instead, they have the potential to create new models of governance and organization that empower communities and promote social change. To achieve this, it is important to resist the urge to impose liberal “common sense” solutions that align with existing power structures, and instead use social code to build a new kind of society that is native to the #fediverse and #openweb

#OGB project involves developing a more decentralized and autonomous model of governance, where control is distributed among community members rather than being centralized in the hands of a few individuals and organizations. This can be achieved by leveraging existing open-source technologies and building on existing #fediverse infrastructure.

It is important to find a balance between structure and flexibility in an organization. A rigid, inflexible structure stifles creativity and innovation, while too much chaos can lead to confusion and inefficiency. By building in a level of messiness and embracing change and unpredictability, organizations can become more adaptive and resilient. Additionally, involving community members in decision-making and allowing them to shape their digital spaces creates a sense of belonging and empowerment, leading to more effective and sustainable outcomes.

By working together and finding working solutions, we can build a more sustainable, inclusive, and equitable #openweb for all.

The #OGB has 3 subjects to talk about. 1) tradition of working activist grassroots organizing 2) the use of technological federation, ActivityPub and the Fediverse traditions to scale. 3) original thinking, bringing these together for grassroots #openweb producer governance, this part needs lots of input.

Then is the #offtopic threads from #mainstreming dogmas and “common sense”. I try to keep this separate, as it’s mostly not relevant, and always quickly turns to trolling, sadly.

Working on outreach text for the #OGB I would have much of the process and text defined by the template, only the functions hardcoded as sliding open/closed. IE. the code is a tool, the template a culture.

All bound by the #4opens and #PGA of course.

This good path is partly why our text is a mess… Not a bad thing if we have “good will” a real source of pain if we do not. We do not.

Project link https://unite.openworlds.info/Open-Media-Network/openwebgovernancebody

A news project for the fediverse

#Indymedia is a decentralized network of independent media outlets that aims to provide a platform for grassroots and alternative perspectives on news and current events. It operates on a decentralized model, with each local or regional outlet being run by an editorial collective who are responsible for moderating content and coordinating with other outlets in the network.

The newswire on each site is open to submissions from citizen journalists and focuses on providing context-rich, on-the-ground reporting. The feature column is written by the editorial collective, who select stories from the newswire and provide additional analysis or commentary.

The network also coordinates with other progressive, #PGA and #4opens projects within the #fediverse. The goal of #Indymedia is to provide a platform for alternative and marginalized voices and to promote decentralized, autonomous organizing and media production.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=txCLtKpDwNE

#indymediaback

technologies job is to hold the trust in place

Think that might be a good #openweb slogan, “technologies job is to hold the trust in place”

#OGB Decisions only count if a wide number of people engaged in them, because in the end it’s this group that will “enforce” the consensus. So one power mad nutter (quick, take the crown off) has little power to capture.

Only trust groups actually have “power” and as they are trust groups this power will likely be used better, a good outcome.

Trust and #4opens solve this hard technology problem in a soft, swishy way. So technology job is to hold the “trust” in place.

#OMN think there are ways to stop people burning the coding project down:

Ask how their feature fits into the #4opens

* Open process should block most

* Open data sum

* Open licence is obvious, so likely won’t block much

* Open “industrial” standards should block much of the let’s do it my way mess.

So if we keep focused on this, with the check on #PGA we should block much of the #mainstreaming and if very polite keep people in board.

This is hard work.

#OMN We build strong defaults and we hardcode in #4opens We keep these ideas at the front of the project, though people will want to push them to the back for outreach (#mainstreaming)

We need to build tech from grassroots, horizontal. Problem is, people will keep adding #mainstreaming common sense. This will course friction that will burn people out fast in tech.

Ideas for a better outcome #OMN

Hope is a swift flow and the strong current that pushes change/challenge

Talking to the #EU crew

Hope is a swift left wing flow and the strong current that pushes change/challenge. Simple truth telling is a deep upwelling, the spring that feeds this fresh flow. We need to nurture truth and hope in every part of our society, both our tribalism and bureaucracy are part of this river, more important than ever in the era of #climatechaos we are fast moving into #XR

Bring simple truth to the surface, pure spring waters helps to nourish.

In the #fedivers and wider #openweb rivers, we have increasing inflows of funding from the traditional bureaucracy. This, on the one hand, is feeding the grassroots and on the other hand shaping to a more #mainstreaming river. We need to strive to have a better outcome from this, the tools they are funding are all open licence, we need to build into them that the more bureaucratic/closed agender can be switched on and off in all these funded projects. This is a simple solution we can work towards.

Conclusion

* All flows have value, we need this influx of funding to grow the #openweb and #fedivers if we are to do challenge/change, so use this opening to shape the influx of value and to shape these institutions that push this flow. See this as an opportune for activism, rather than something to be #blocked

* On our-side, we can nurture our tribalism to this “common” course with the #4opens and simple political statements like #PGA hallmarks.

* Our more theoretical friends can use their skills to resurrect the ideas that shaped past movements and feed these into the new movements.

How can we make our media better.

* Use the carrot and the stick, talk about balance rather than conflict.

* Bring the liberals in, but keep the basic #4opens #PGA strong and visible, everyone has a role in the era of #climatechaos so be hopeful and friendly.

* If the river is cool and fresh, the #mainstreaming and #fashernistas will soon jump and swim with this flow.

We live in creative times, let’s enjoy creativity.

What is the #OMN project for

The #OMN is about building #KISS bootem up trust based media networks for publishing and soughing content with enriched metadata flows. In the end you have a “stupidly simple semantic web of media object “cauldrons” and flows build up from a local level. What you/we do with this is up to the users/producers… this is held to radical politics by #PGA

Initial projects are media #indymediaback and archiving #makeinghistory with the resistances’ exhibition. There are likely lots of other things you can build as its just pipes and flows – the internet as a “open/trust” database of humane objects/people.

How this fits into traditional or Alt economics is not rarely up to us – but bounded by #4opens and #PGA so up for “connections” based on opendata flows – #RSS or #activertypub are good starts.