Over the last ten years, it’s wild how people barrel into grassroots tech projects like #OMN behaving like paranoid fuckwits — wreaking havoc and then scampering off to nurse their self-inflicted wounds. This pattern repeats so often it feels scripted. And yes, this is VERY bad behaviour. Please, try not to be like this. Thanks.
These people, the #fashionistas chasing the latest fad, the #NGO prats clinging to crumbling institutions, and the geeks blind to anything beyond their screen, are all unknowingly (or knowingly) kneeling at the altar of the #deathcult. They drag in their #mainstreaming assumptions, wielding ‘common sense’ like a cudgel, oblivious to how it shatters the delicate, horizontal culture the #4opens grow.
On the #fediverse, we’re witnessing a growing native/non-native culture clash. That’s not inherently bad, friction sparks growth. But when the horizontal crew, the ones refusing to play the #mainstreaming power games, consistently get trampled, we have a problem. The commons collapse under the weight of imported hierarchy and fear-driven control.
Mess and more mess. And what do we need? Shovels. Lots of shovels. To dig deep and compost this wreckage into fertile ground. The tech? It’s just scaffolding. The building is made of people, mythos, and tradition. It’s a historical flow, as is everything of real value. But instead of embracing this flow, people, in the grip of #stupidindividualism, push hard for self-destruction and distraction. It’s almost like they want the #deathcult to win. And in this world, where the economic machine grinds everything to dust, it’s a hard problem to shift.
We need to break the cycle. To remember our own history. Back when we did things better. Back when we built #indymedia, not just as a tool but as a living, breathing community. A space where the value was in the social fabric itself. The path is in federating out to a non-(owned) branded networks. Build the flows. The undercurrents. The radical gardens of storytelling and truth. It’s time to stop licking wounds and start digging again.
On this path, the #OMN hashtag story is a shovel, ready to dig through the layers of decay in the tech mess. It’s a tool to help us compost the rot of the #deathcult and plant the seeds of a new, living, breathing #openweb.
I have had a plan for the last 20 years: to use #hashtags to seed affinity groups of action. This isn’t just tech, it’s about creating the movement that actually make a difference. #Hashtags are more than metadata; they’re flags, rallying points, paths through the chaos. And in this #Fediverse based reboot of the #openweb, we finally have the space to wield them effectively.
I’ve been exploring this path for years, you can dive into my thoughts on it here. But what we really need is a home for this practice, a network where these seeds can grow into something tangible. Because fighting back doesn’t need to be complicated. It’s how every right and freedom we enjoy was won in the first place: by pushing, not just defending.
The commons won’t protect itself. We haven’t yet effectively used the openings we have to defend our digital commons, let alone expand it. And as history shows, the best defence is an active attack, not with weapons, but with action, storytelling, and a refusal to let the #mainstreaming mess suffocate us.
Let’s call out the #nastyfew instead of talking vaguely about ‘elites.’ Let’s name the problem, plant the seeds, and grow the alternatives. The path I outline in the #OMN can shape this living network, a flow where our history informs our present, and where collective action can finally break the cycle of destruction. It’s time to remember our history, build the #4opens path, and stop waiting for someone else to save us. We have the tools, let’s start digging.
