"There may not be as much humanity in the world as one would like to see, but there is some. There's more than one would think."
I have for the last 11 years talked about the problem with user profiling and algorithmic content. Creation of echo chambers and the ability to easily manipulate what people see for marketing purposes and worse. Even made a cat video to try to make the point. I wish more would see this.
The point is not for political parties to see the potential here, but rather to see the risk. The only way to fix this is to ban user profiling.
You have made a good choice to move the the Fediverse. It would help for more of your friends to join us.
https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2024/11/09/social-media-traditional-news-elections-00188548
#Politics #fediverse#Mastodon @EUCommission#Privacy#Twitter#Facebook#USPol#USPolitics
Because of a bullish day in the stock market, #ElonMusk's net worth increased $13 billion in one day, partly due to his connection with Trump.
Some news organizations are saying it is now up $26 billion since election day. That much in just a few days.
It's just a reminder that the original word fascism, as coined by Mussolini was the merging of corporations and government (Corporatism) and total authority over its citizens. #USPol It will lead to corruption like never seen in the US.
https://fortune.com/2024/11/08/elon-musk-net-worth-300-billion-donald-trump-president-election/
https://www.sfchronicle.com/tech/article/elon-musk-net-worth-trump-ties-19900399.php
First, take steps to protect yourself. Find community. Take care of your health. Learn how to protect yourself digitally. Find and nurture sources of reliable news and information.
Then: choose your fights. Think about what matters most to you, and look for ways to fight for those things. Find people who are members of communities under threat and/or experienced organizers doing this work already, and ask them what they need. Help the people around you.
Maybe you’re not ready to read how to fight yet. It’s okay to take some time to rest, grieve, be angry. When you're ready, read on.
First, take steps to protect yourself. Find community. Take care of your health. Learn how to protect yourself digitally. Find and nurture sources of reliable news and information.
Consider reducing your reliance on centralized social networks controlled by billionaires, and instead establishing a web presence you control. Evaluate the risks when choosing hosting providers, make backups, and make it as easy as possible to switch hosts should the need arise.
Consider no longer using apps that collect and store sensitive data, such as period tracker or fertility apps. Be cautious about location tracking and other tech-enabled surveillance.
Find and support trusted sources of news and information. If you rely heavily on mainstream news outlets owned by billionaires who were first in line to congratulate Trump on his victory, consider diversifying your media diet. ProPublica, 404 Media, and Flaming Hydra are a couple of great publications, or the Institute for Nonprofit News has a great directory of many more. Subscribe to and/or financially support independent solo writers like Parker Molloy (The Present Age), Erin Reed, Marisa Kabas (The Handbasket), and Seamus Hughes (Court Watch). Pay for a subscription to your local newspaper. Maybe also subscribe to a non-US paper while you’re at it. Consider supplementing your social feeds with an RSS-powered blogroll.
Now what?
First things first, protect yourself. Even if you think the threat of authoritarianism is overblown, take steps to defend against it. If you’re a journalist, maybe read this section twice.
Find your communities. Most people have many communities: the friend group you hang out with in real life, your family, your neighbors, your internet friends, your coworkers, your church or synagogue or mosque or other religious community. Strengthen these communities. If you don’t feel like you have much in the way of community, begin forming them: join new social groups, and try to meet likeminded people near you. Introduce yourself to your neighbors.
Join (or start) a union. There’s strength in numbers, and especially if your industry may fall under threat, you’ll want to unionize now and not wait for that threat to materialize.
Consider taking proactive steps to obtain healthcare that could become challenging to obtain in the future, if you are able. For example, if you need to replace or are considering getting an IUD, now might be the time.
Use end-to-end-encrypted messaging apps for your communications. I use Signal heavily, but there are other options. Please know that not all apps that advertise E2EE enable it by default or offer it for group chats (looking at you Telegram), so double check that.
Consider choosing a VPN to help protect your privacy online, and learn about the pros and cons of using them. Learn when, why, and how to use Tor.
And it is the people who have been fighting not just to protect themselves, their communities, and the things they love, but also fighting for people they’ve never met, in places they’ve never been, living lives they’ve never lived, facing horrors they’ve never faced.
Maybe you’re not ready to read how to fight yet. It’s okay to take some time to rest, grieve, be angry. When you're ready, read on.
I am disappointed. I am sad. I am afraid. But, you see, I was disappointed, sad, and afraid before the election, too. In and outside of the United States, across the political spectrum, governments are and have been failing their people.
And it is the people who have been fighting not just to protect themselves, their communities, and the things they love, but also fighting for people they’ve never met, in places they’ve never been, living lives they’ve never lived, facing horrors they’ve never faced.
Illustration: Three arrows: a black arrow pointing right, a blue arrow pointing up and slightly to the left, and a red arrow pointing more to the left
I had allowed myself to hope that American voters would choose the better of the presidential options available to us, and I was wrong. I am disappointed. I am sad. I am afraid.
But, you see, I was disappointed, sad, and afraid before the election, too. In and outside of the United States, across the political spectrum, governments are and have been failing their people. And it is the people who have been fighting not just to protect themselves, their communities, and the things they love, but also fighting for people they’ve never met, in places they’ve never been, living lives they’ve never lived, facing horrors they’ve never faced.
No matter how the United States election went, the fights were going to continue. A Harris victory would not solve our problems, domestically or worldwide. Nor would it change the fact that a sizable portion of people in this country are buying what Trump and his allies are selling. The only open questions were who the specific adversaries in the White House would be, who among the fighters would keep fighting, and who would join the fight.
The first question has been answered. Now the questions are: if you have been fighting already, are you going to continue to fight? If you haven’t been, are you going to begin?
I am disappointed. I am sad. I am afraid. But, you see, I was disappointed, sad, and afraid before the election, too. In and outside of the United States, across the political spectrum, governments are and have been failing their people.
Newsletter: A message to those asking “what do I do now?” How to protect yourselves, and how to fight.
Some thoughtful and hopeful insights from @pluralistic, as is often the case.
https://pluralistic.net/2024/07/14/fracture-lines/#disassembly-manual
It's time for charities and for-good organisations to ditch X - a platform which helped grow and fund the Trump campaign - and move to alternatives where they aren't at the mercy of a single persons politics.
As a start, we're excited to be featured as an organisation which can help in this @BylineTimes article
There's a lot of hard work to be done, but we like hard work. Hard work is good work.
#Fediverse#Charity#NGO#News#USPol#Politics#X#SocialMedia#Twitter
I cry for my trans friends, immigrant friends, and women in the US; Ukrainians and Palestinians; and my shattered hope. Decades of positive trends were just broken. US institutions will not survive the next presidency. The oldest modern democracy just fell to a fascist. It’s over.
It's polling day in the US! 🗳️
We've heard the queues over there can get pretty long, so remember to take a snack and some water when you head out to the polls.
Take time to understand what you are voting for. This is an important moment for yourself, your family, and the people in your life.
You can keep up with discussion in the @uspolitics Feed or stay up to date on all things Harris in the @KamalaHarrisWin Group.
On Tuesday we #FederateTheVote and make some bit of #fediverse organizing history…. #Uspol boost this post to grow our following to the biggest social reach we can! cc: @GottaLaff
As an active federal contractor, Coinbase is prohibited from making political contributions, including to super PACs. This makes $50 million that they have contributed in violation of pay-to-play laws for contractors.
See my reporting on their previous violation, which is being reviewed by the FEC: https://www.citationneeded.news/coinbase-campaign-finance-violation/
As an active federal contractor, Coinbase is prohibited from making political contributions, including to super PACs. This makes $50 million that they have contributed in violation of pay-to-play laws for contractors.
We're breaking up the Newsmast app birthday celebrations quickly with a piece of brilliant news!
The @KamalaHarrisWin Group has hit 4000 followers 🎉
It's amazing to see the work being done on the Fediverse ahead of the upcoming US election.
For our team, it's especially great to see the support in this space for the Harris campaign.
There's not long left now, so if you want to discuss, share, or learn more about the Harris campaign follow the group!
#VoteEarlyDay#USPol
I voted on Oct 18th, had my hubby drop my ballot in the local dropbox on the 19th, and had it reported as accepted on the 24th.
I voted on Oct 18th, had my hubby drop my ballot in the local dropbox on the 19th, and had it reported as accepted on the 24th.
When I go to votewa.gov, this is what I see:
A small portion of the crowd at The Ellipse. At least 40,000 people are in attendance for VP Kamala Harris’s address in DC. #HarrisWalz2024 #vote #usa #uspol #election2024 #election #voteblue #kamalaharris
Today is #VoteEarlyDay in the US 🗳️
This is a really important day in the US election so we hope our American friends are up to speed!
You can follow non-partisan @voteearlyday and see more information about early voting across the Fediverse here: https://mastodon.social/@voteearlyday/113390660516353226
If you're supporting the Democratic candidate Kamala Harris, make sure you check out the @KamalaHarrisWin Group too, there's a lot of lively discussion!