Tag: postmodernism

A messy job, but with the right tools and approach, we can make progress

The neoliberal world-view is designed to replace trust with greed as the social motivator. Of course, all successful societies are based/built on trust, so neoliberalism is building a #deathcult. The current #climatechaos and social decay are simple to understand outcomes. If you’re wondering why this is useful, it’s an important part of a conversation and an obvious statement that many can agree with. When they do, ask them for solutions. When they inevitably come up with common sense neoliberal mainstream views, you can then gently dismiss these as #deathcult.

For the last 40 years, #neoliberalism and #postmodernism have shaped “common sense” in #mainstreaming society. This has led to behaviours that become hostile when challenged. These behaviours are especially entrenched in our communities, both online and offline, as we are building from activism it’s a challenge to mediate this behaviour to foster better outcomes.

Composting the mess requires empathy, patience, and strategic mediation. By creating activist spaces for dialogue, showcasing success stories, leveraging tools and principles, and managing defensive reactions effectively, we foster a culture of sustainability, justice, and collaboration.

In the tech, path, the world is so different and so BROKEN now that I have to re-watch and re-read to talk about #OMN stuff now. We forget how broken things have become over the last 40 years… we are all lost in the “common sense” muddle, it’s a mess.

From the #openweb: “A Silicon Valley VC-funded startup succeeds or fails based on how fast it can grow. At the start, it needs YOU to grow. It will put its best face forward and promise to be nice. Once it has grown enough, and it no longer needs you (see: network effects), you have little to no power to affect its behaviour. That’s when you get screwed. Maybe not all at once (see: slowly-boiling frogs) but eventually, sure enough.”

So exercise your power when you have it. At the start. By looking the other way.

Strategies for Effective Mediation

  1. Building Empathy and Patience from the understanding that many people’s world-views have been shaped by decades of dominant #deathcult ideologies. Balance “spiky” confrontational and “fluffy” non-confrontational Language.
  2. Gradual Introduction of Alternative Views: from the “fluffy” path soft prodding, introducing alternative perspectives gently. Use relatable examples and stories to illustrate points, promote small, manageable changes rather than radical shifts. Incremental changes are more likely to be accepted and adopted.
  3. From the “spiky” prospective, it’s sometimes needed to break things to clear space, this activism is a core to this path. We do need space for people to express their views and explore new ideas.
  4. Highlight success stories of grassroots and alternative projects that have achieved real life positive outcomes. Emphasize the visible benefits of these projects in terms of community well-being, environmental sustainability, and social justice.
  5. Leveraging Tools and Principles: can be used to build tools for community engagement, to mobilize communities around principles of mutual aid, collaboration and shared knowledge.

In conclusion, composting the mess created by 40 years of #neoliberalism and #postmodernism requires empathy, patience, and strategic mediation. By creating activist spaces for dialogue, showcasing success stories, leveraging tools and principles, and managing defensive reactions effectively, we foster a culture of sustainability, justice, and collaboration. It’s a messy job, but with the right tools and approach, we can make progress. Now, let’s pick up our shovels and get to work.

https://opencollective.com/open-media-network

The mess we have made #mainstreaming postmodernism

A complex philosophical and cultural movement of the mid to late 20th century. At its core is a rejection of objective values and beliefs, scepticism towards the idea of absolute truth, and a distrust of grand narratives. Let’s have a brief look at this, with Noam Chomsky view of why this movement is still pushing the intellectual and social “mess” we try to live in.

Rejection of Absolute Truth: #Postmodernism challenges the idea that there is a simple truth. Instead, it posits that truths are only, subjective, and socially constructed.

Rejection of Grand Narratives: Postmodernists are critical of overarching narratives and ideologies that help to explain large-scale historical, social, and cultural phenomena. Arguing, these narratives suppress alternative perspectives and reinforce power structures.

Critique of Power Relations: Central to postmodernism is the analysis of how power operates within society. Postmodernists highlight how power is unevenly distributed and shapes people’s identities, experiences, and world-views.

Deconstruction: This involves taking apart and examining all the underlying assumptions, ideas, and frameworks that constitute texts, ideas, and social practices. To push the inherent contradictions and power dynamics within them into view.

Chomsky’s Critique of Postmodernism:

Obscurantism and Inaccessibility: Chomsky argues that postmodernist writing is overly complex and obscure, making it inaccessible to the public and academics. That this complexity serves to alienate and insulate postmodernist thinkers from actual grassroots activism and practical engagement.

Lack of Concrete Action: Postmodernism allows people to adopt a radical stance without engaging in any meaningful action. That the focus on abstract theorizing detracts from any real-world activism that as a hope of change to challenge the #mainstreaming mess.

Creation of an Academic Power Structure: Chomsky asserts that postmodernism created its own academic power structure, where material rewards, prestigious positions and conference opportunities are given to those who adhere to its complex and impenetrable discourse. Thus diffusing and displacing the real voices of change and challenge.

Contradictory and Trivial Claims: Chomsky criticizes postmodernists for making contradictory statements dressed in complex language to appear profound. That many postmodern claims mix trivial truths with outright absurdities, diluting the pats of knowledge and understanding.

Detrimental Impact on Third World Countries: We need to highlight the negative impact of postmodernism in developing countries, where intellectuals who could have contributed to meaningful social and political change are instead drawn into the abstract and irrelevant debates inside the postmodernism mess.

A #fashernista look at this mess, do you think it’s helpful spreading this #dotcons fodder?

Postmodernism’s rejection of universal truths and grand narratives leads to intellectual fragmentation. Without any common framework, society become fragmented, making it difficult to build consensus or coherent strategies for social change. The complexity and elitism of postmodernist “thought” erodes the public trust in intellectuals and academics. When scholars are disconnected from everyday concerns, their influence and credibility diminish. Postmodernism’s emphasis on the subjective nature of truth leads to cultural relativism, where all viewpoints are seen as equally valid. This undermines efforts to address injustices and challenge harmful practices. The focus on deconstruction and critique leads to a paralysis of action. If all truths and structures are seen as flawed, it becomes impossible to mobilize collective action or propose constructive solutions we ungently need

In conclusion to this sad story: Postmodernism has dug itself deep into contemporary thought, so that people don’t see any more its part in establishment norms and power structures, but it’s still there pushing much of the current mess. This has grown intellectual insularity, a lack of practical engagement, and a strong tendency to obscurantism, thus building the current “messy”, hard blocking of meaningful activism and most clear discourse.

#KISS it’s a mess we need to compost, best not to be a prat about this, thanks

The tech world is in a state of chaos and dysfunction

People don’t like to talk about how the tech world is worshipping a #deatcult to push a state of chaos and dysfunction. It’s KISS That we need to compost this mess, but to do this we need to reckon with the consequences of our past decisions to understand how we arrived at this.

Over the past four decades, there has been an intertwining of #postmodernist social thinking and #neoliberal economic planing. This marriage of #ideologies led to fractured social values and pushed out of sight the ideological divides that used to balance the western world. This “invisible” mess is leading to right-wing polarization and dysfunction in both politics and technology.

In social technology, this translated into the proliferation of centralized platforms building our lives inside #dotcons. We’ve witnessed the rise of platforms that push profit over people’s well-being, exacerbating divisions, amplifying disinformation and hate speech. We now have no choice but to confront existential threats like #climatechange and ecological degradation. Standing in this mess, it is now imperative that we acknowledge our role in shaping the current reality. For forty years, we’ve marched down this dark path, shaping our “human nature” through #blinded choices and actions.

Yes, the next four decades will be marked by growing hardship and suffering as we grapple with the consequences of our actions. But this must not stop us from the path of honest responsibility for the better course forward out of this mess we made. It’s well past time to reject the poisoned philosophies and dogmatic economic doctrines that have brought us to this precipice.

To step away from this, we need to reclaim agency over our future and commit to a path of social healing, reconciliation, by embracing the power of action and solidarity to fix it. In the era of #stupidindividualism it’s not simply to push mess back at this, a first step is #KISS to not view this social thinking as an individualistic moral judgment. The effectiveness of #postmodernism and #neoliberalism in achieving their goals is evident, the next judgment lies in mediating this social choice.

The disintegration of social norms and the widening gap between the rich and the poor are natural outcomes of the path we’ve chosen. It’s not just about moral judgment; it’s about recognizing the consequences of our choices and taking steps to course correct towards a more sustainable future. And away from the current “common sense” mess.

Yes, if you hear the shouting “don’t be a prat” it’s likely needed 😉

Working with #mainstreaming to compost the current mess

#mainstreaming people are always limited in their options, there is a strong pushing for them to see other people from their #neoliberlism and #postmodernism, these 40 years of “common sense” is mess making. Their behaviour tends to be vile when this “common sense” is challenged, by trying to get them to work in or even see alt views. Our “native” mission is mediating this vile behaviour for better outcomes.

If you prod them too hard, they retreat into their shells like snails

#dontbeaprat is a positive statement of what’s next?

In activism (and interestingly less so in #mainstreaming life now) #stupidindividualism is a constant poison. With #blinded, people treat critical social thinking as ONLY personal criticism. This has the effect of #blocking that spreads mess over the very needed social change and challenge. Am increasingly using the  #dontbeaprat hashtag to communicate on this problem.

I think another useful hashtag on this behaviour is #blinded, which is in part self-inflicted and in part a general social outcome of the last 40 years of worshipping #postmodernism and #neoliberalism. The hashtag #deathcult is a useful “uncomfortable” way of expressing this.

Why is this such an issue, people are directly responsible for this mess making, as both of these ideologies are actually dead themselves now. It’s an intellectual zombie block.

So #dontbeaprat is a positive statement of what’s next?

Please #dontbeaprat on this, thanks.

Talking to friendly people who have built their careers on and in #postmodernism

I have been at the coal face of affective direct action for a progressive change/challenge of the current mess for all my life, well this is a family history going back 3 generations. And this makes meany issues obvious as they keep happening, they circal, and if we are to be the change we need to be, we need to mediate some of these bad circles #KISS

This is one #blocking

Q. Dude will tie themselves into knots rationalising their desire to be selfish by citing everything between Aristoteles, John Dewey, and utilitarianism, in lengthy hyper-complex intellectual posturing that basically just boils down to: “But I wanna!”

A. This is true, with the #postmodern default we would end up with mess. What happens if we try not to do the postmodernist default? What would that looklike #nothingnew

Q. This has nothing to do with postmodernism and everything to do with dudes rationalising their own selfishness.

A. You are not wrong, but step back for a wider view to try and see and talk about the root of this mess. I would say this is an example of #blocking from the #postmodern path. Can we look at this from a #modernist view to take a different path? Good faith question.

Q. So, I did a PhD that focused on the application of Derrida’s ideas to interactivity. I’m not the guy you come at trying to blame postmodernism for all the world’s ills.

A. can understand that, trying to highlight the bad use of the #mainstreaming of #postmodernism and highlight this in the current social mess of the last 40 years. And yes, understand that #postmodernisam and #neoliberalism are dead ideologies. But they have both deeply shaped the last 40 years of #mainstreaming culture. The mess we work in today, thus it is useful to ask questions on good paths out of this mess.

Q. Yeah, that’s nonsense. Sorry, not sorry. It’s all capitalism all the way down. Philosophical movements such as postmodernism or modernism are just window-dressing on an amoral, anti-intellectual capitalist hellscape. Any philosophical movement, even the ones that power actually pays attention to such as utilitarianism, is just completely irrelevant. Deck chairs on the Titanic.

Q. OK we can leave this here… if ideas and thinking do not matter then mess it is. Mess can be good, and it can be bad, in the current social mess it’s VERY bad https://visionon.tv/w/gq6qCiUoC2J8RqhYHgpmzq how to deal with this is a good faith question.

Q. Also, I always have an extreme scepticism about those who blame postmodernism for society’s ills because a lot of the anti-postmodernists are bedfellows with reactionaries who think these cultural ideas have mainstreamed moral and sexual degeneracy, which is just code for homophobia, transphobia, and misogyny.

A. Can continue this if you like. Let’s put this one into the #mainstreaming miss use of #postmodernisam the is a lot of this, kinda of a natural outcome, it’s a mess. Am with Chomsky on this one https://visionon.tv/w/p/kaafmbuLWyASifGg7DZ9y3 What would a #modernist path out of the current mess look like? And yes, I understand there is a bad history. Let’s not re tread that path. What is a good path? An example is #XR “tell the truth” is a modernist path. Tell the “truths” it is not.

Q. No, let’s retread that path. You’re repurposing the argument of the religious right. They blame society’s decline on postmodernism having mainstreamed moral relativism. You don’t get to gloss over the fact that this is specifically an attack against gay rights, trans rights, and women’s rights. There is no causal link between the state of the world and postmodernism. It’s all about power and money. Blaming postmodernism sides you with the most hateful reactionaries around

A. Think this is easy to answer.
Nop,
Nop,

And worth talking about, there are overlaps between the economics of #neoliberalism and the use of #postmodern philosophy over the last 40 years. We have a HUGE social mess, and no social language or thinking to compost this mess. We need a way of thinking, #Modernism is a shovel, we have lots of mess to compost.

Q. You are not making any sense whatsoever. What matters is who is in power. If you want change, you need to change who is in power using whatever nonviolent, peaceful means available. Blaming postmodernism and “social mess” sounds to me like you’re just a reactionary who wants to walk back gay rights, reproductive rights, trans rights, women’s rights, and civil rights in general. It sounds like bigotry. Postmodernism and “moral relativism” is a favourite punching bag of the religious right and fascists. When you come at me with the same kind of rhetoric, I have to assume that you’re sympathetic to their ideas on society and culture.

A. Am obviously not talking about that. Defensiveness and personalizing this is not useful, apart from it illustrates what I am talking about. https://visionon.tv/w/sNo39CPaX7MswQ57tVy2TR mess and more mess. Is #modernism useful for taking a different path is what I am asking.

UPDATE: Sorry the video links are offline the was not any money or resources to keep the video project online after 20 years, it’s sad and dysfunctional, if anyone has a big donation we could put it back online https://opencollective.com/open-media-network

You are making a mess of social technology

From my prospective, a lot of people are being prats on social/technology. This should be obvuse statement, but it’s not. If you think about this we can take two paths, the first is to #block this, obviously making more pratish behaver. The second is to ask questions and grow, thus reducing pratish behaver. In this era of #stupidindividualism which path do you think people take, and yes they ARE oftern being prats on this 😉 Get off your knees comes to mind, and please be less of a prat.

The last 40 years of worshipping the #deathcult (#neoliberalism salted with #postmodernism poisoned our communities by making individualism toxic. I am all for freedom, that people can be stupid if they want to be, but I keep using my freedom to tell them that this is often pratish behaver that is toxic and self-destructive. It’s up to them if they want to act on this communication, and yes, the #stupidindividualism thing to do is to #block this communication.

In this, it’s up to YOU to get off your knees, to stop worshipping the #deathcult (neoliberalism salted with postmodernism) and to look up to see you are making a mess of social technology.

Why would you be the right person to build the #OMN

The social change/challenge project of an organic intellectual is an act of love and a gift economy, each toot and each hashtag is a gift. The #OMN hashtag story is designed to make people who often unconsciously worship the #deathcult (an obvious metaphor for #neoliberalism) and have internalized the last 40 years of the dead philosophy of #postmodernism uncomfortable.

The idea is that from these small openings, people can try to step outside this mess and challenge the status quo. To build the #OMN, we are looking for the tiny minority who can still think outside this mess and are willing to challenge the #mainstreaming narrative. The project is a call to action for those who want to create a more equitable and just society.

#boatingeurope at anchor for a few days on the Medway. Metaphorically, am  taking the piss outa #stupidindividualism. The reality picture would have 4–5 boats rafted up with a disparate crew having a barbi.

The social change/challenge project of an organic intellectual

The social change/challenge project of an organic intellectual is an act of love, a gift economy, each toot, each hashtag is a gift. The #OMN hashtag story is designed to make people who (often unconsciously) worship the #deathcult (an obvious metaphor for #neoliberalism) and have internalized the last 40 years of (the dead philosophy) #postmodernism uncomfortable. From these small openings, they can try to step outside this mess.

To build the #OMN we are looking for the tiny minority who can still think outside this mess, is this you?

A balancing of spiky/fluffy to see and act outside the current #mainstreaming mess.

A look at the recent history of radical grassroots activism

#ClimateCamp was a radical grassroots direct action movement to directly challenge to raise awareness about climate change and advocate for solutions to mitigate its effects. The movement was made up of a loosely organized network of activists who used a diversity of tactics to achieve their goals. Climate Camps were established in many countries. The movement reached its peak in the late 2000s and early 2010s and had a significant impact on public debate and government policy at the time.

#Protestcamps are gatherings of activists who set up temporary camps in public spaces in order to bring attention to a cause or issue, or sometimes to push direct change. The goal of these camps is to create a #DIY direct action space where people come together, discuss, create real alternatives and demonstrate. The camps range from #fluffy peaceful gatherings to more #spiky disruptive and confrontational, depending on the nature of the issue protested and the diversity of tactics of the activists involved. Some well-known examples of protest camps include #Occupy, #ClimateCamp

#CriticalMass a decentralized activism movement started in 1992. The movement is a monthly direct action bike ride where participants gather to raise awareness, and directly challagne car culture. Critical Mass is about reclaiming public space for cyclists and to assert the right of cyclists to use the roads. The rides are a festive and celebratory, this activism as since spread to cities around the world, with similar events taking place in many countries.

I bring these movements and traditions up because using #openweb tech tools like #RSS and #ActivityPub has benefits in the context of direct action and grassroots politics.

  • Decentralization: RSS and ActivityPub are decentralized technologies that are not controlled by any single entity, making them resistant to censorship and control.
  • Interoperability: By using open standards like ActivityPub, organizations and individuals can communicate and share content with each other, regardless of the platform they use.
  • Transparency: The use of #openweb tools can increase transparency and accountability in the political process, allowing for greater public scrutiny and engagement.
  • Ownership: By using #opensource tools, individuals and organizations can own and control their data, rather than relying on proprietary services controlled by corporations.
  • Accessibility: By using #openweb technologies, information can be more easily accessible to those who are marginalized or excluded from the mainstream, enabling more inclusive and equitable participation in the political process.

These tools and traditions can help direct action and grassroots politics, tech is an important tool for effecting social change. Direct action refers to forms of activism that seeks to achieve a goal directly, without intermediaries, often through disruptive or confrontational means. Direct action can include strikes, sit-ins, blockades, and other forms of resistance.

Grassroots politics refers to a political movement or approaches bottom-up, rather than top-down, meaning it seeks to empower citizens to take action on political issues, rather than on traditional power structures such as political parties or government. Grassroots politics gives a voice to marginalized or underrepresented communities to create change from the ground up.
Together, grassroots direct action and offer a way for people to engage in the political process and to bring about change in a democratic and inclusive way. By taking action outside traditional political channels, activists and communities bring about change on issues that they care about.

We can see the seed of this in the #Fediverse, a #openweb decentralized social network consisting of independent, community run servers that are all compatible with each other. This allows for a more open and democratic internet experience, as people can choose to participate in online communities without relying on single centralized platforms. The Fediverse is seen as a more privacy-friendly alternative to the #dotcons, but this is a working “white lie” based on thinking.

What is happening today? #XR “Extinction Rebellion,” a global social movement that uses non-violent civil disobedience to protest against the failure of governments to take action on the climate and ecological crisis. The movement disrupts the status quo and forces political leaders to take immediate action to address the crisis. The movement was founded in the UK in 2018 and has since spread to other countries around the world, with a focus on large-scale protests and acts of civil disobedience.

#XR is a protest movement, some #fluffy people classify XR as a #spiky radical protest movement due to its tactics and goals, but others consider it more liberal because of its commitment to #fluffy non-violence. Ultimately, the classification of XR as radical or liberal depends on individuals looking at the problem, it’s a debate.

What can we do to help contemporary activism? Programming and ideology are different areas that intersect. Ideology refers to a set of beliefs, values, and assumptions that shape an understanding of the world and people’s place in it. In the context of programming, ideology comes into play when a programmer brings their often #mainstreaming values and beliefs to the coding they write and the systems they build. You can see this in the copying of the #dotcons to build the #fediverse and how this is now shaping the current #openweb reboot.

In the current mess, most real radical social change and challenge projects get bogged down in discussing invisible #postmodernism and the criticism of “isms”. This hole in our ideas of blindly following #mainstreaming ideology can make a person a “zombie” to limit the ability to think critically. The phrase #nothingnew is used to suggest that fresh thinking on old issues is needed, rather than blindly following existing dead #mainstreaming ideologies. The use of ad hominem arguments, which is a type of logical fallacy attacking individuals rather than the argument they are making, is clearly #blocking. to make this reboot work, we do need to compost this mess.

The #OMN project focuses on linking alt/grassroots media, to play a role in rebooting the #openweb and thus avoiding the #blocking by #fashernista and #geekproblem agenda. The #openweb is the internet where information and content is accessible to all, regardless of their location, device or network, and can be shared, linked, and re-used without restrictions or barriers imposed by proprietary platforms, walled gardens, or monopolistic practices.

This path needs to be often contrasted with the #closedweb or “walled garden web”, where content and data are locked behind proprietary platforms, controlled by corporations or governments, and subject to limitations, restrictions, and surveillance. The #dotcons

DRAFT

Post-modernism is a dead philosophy that still rules the #mainstreaming

A. #Postmodernism is a dead philosophy that still rules the #mainstreaming.

Q. Zombie ideology.

A. Then we are zombies…

Q. Speak for yourself 🤣 I’ve rejected postmodernism entirely. I’m interested in natural law now, processes that hold true outside human consciousness.

A. That’s just what a zombie would say. Postmodernism aharrhhh…

Q. No, you are 💯 wrong.

A. Ahrrra goes the #zombie… Did you read the link to see if it’s relevant? 🙂

Q. Yes. I feel you are being a full cup. Let the tea flow.

A. Postmodernism is a discourse characterized by rejection of grand narratives, epistemological certainty, the stability of meaning, and the emphasis on ideology as a mechanism of truth… (cue zombie groans…)

Have you considered that your embrace of “natural law” might just be another way of doing the same thing? Ahrrrer goes the zombie.

It’s a tricky bind we all face. Maybe the first step out of this mess is revisiting modernism. Modernism (though, fair warning, it’s a bad article).

Q. I’m rejecting industrial civilization. That means rejecting postmodernism and modernism. Adam Smith, Hegel, Marx, Bakunin, all of them. I’m going deeper, looking at the foundations they all built upon. I’ll keep Kropotkin and the naturalists, but I’m done with “isms.” I may agree with aspects of certain ideas but never fully, and never blindly. I’m interested in natural law because of its raw objectivity, this is in total opposition to postmodernism, but it shares some similarities with #modernism.

A. So… back to modernism then? Let’s reboot it 🙂

“Iisms” are just ways of thinking. You have one, or you are a zombie… ahrrrahhh.

To reject “isms” as controlling forces is itself a postmodern move – zombie trap! 😉

Q. I agree with some aspects of modernism, but not all. I’d argue that subscribing to any “ism” makes you a zombie because you’re outsourcing your thinking. We need critical thinkers and people who question.

A. That’s headfirst into the zombie trap. You might need a fresh perspective to climb out 😉

Hint: #nothingnew, though probably not in the way you think. Fresh thinking on old issues.

Q. Hamish Campbell, unless you’re starting a cult, not every viewpoint outside your own is zombie 🧟‍♀️.

A. You’re not thinking critically here – that statement is postmodernism in action, which, yes, makes it… zombie thinking! Read the articles, reflect, and build on the ideas instead of rejecting them outright. Don’t be a zombie 🙂

P.S. #nothingnew is a way out of this trap – it’s deliberately challenging. Brains are for thinking, not food. History isn’t baggage; it’s a toolkit. Use it, or lose it. We’ve lost too much already. Rethinking modernism might just be a way out of this mess.

Dogmatism is the unfortunate outcome of#mainstreaming postmodernism… who would’ve thought?

Q. They imply the opposite – it’s quite paradoxical 😋. Ironic is a better word than paradoxical.