Bonum Certa Men Certa

Insulting Free Software Users in Social Control Media (Proprietary, Bloated With Opaque JavaScript) is Like Insulting Amish on TV

posted by Roy Schestowitz on Jul 23, 2024

Amish Shoo Fly Pie.

Why bother? Don't take the bait.

THERE is this old (but alas "viral") misconception that for Free software to be further popularised its proponents need to outsource and make "presence" in Social Control Media or Social Control Networks. That's nonsense! If anything, it sends contradictory messages. It also puts those proponents inside the lion's mouth. It's never imperative to hop onboard some transient bandwagon like Twitter (a train wreck).

Similarly, taking on transparency-centric journalism rather than software, it seems quite wrong or at least misguided that Wikileaks is not updating its own site (that it controls) and instead playing games in Twitter (X). It's not just Wikileaks but also the Assange family. They frequently use Google (YouTube) instead of self-hosting their videos, which are controversial enough (some violence and sometimes death contained in them) to merit Orwellian censorship, dictated or demanded from a prolific Pentagon contractor, Alphabet. That's the equivalent of using GitHub, controlled by Microsoft and the NSA, to build Free software. It's a terrible idea, a short-sighted reflex.

It's moreover a bit disappointing to see that Stella Assange uses social control media ("X") to do "Where's Waldo?" with Julian. She'd be better off starting her own site rather than offloading to Alphabet (YouTube), Musk/KSA etc. She and Julian should know better ("Google Is Not What It Seems"), based on Wikileaks' direct experiences with Google over the years.

Wikileaks remains far too dependent on or reliant on the very same companies it need to be fighting, exposing etc. You cannot beat company X (not "X" the company) by leveraging the "services" of company X. If you become EFFECTIVE, as you might do at one point, they WILL shut you down. It already happened to Wikileaks several times in the past. Misuse of power when some threshold is reached is the norm. Live and learn, do not repeat the mistakes others made and hope you'll be the "lucky" one, the exception. Some Wikileaks staff used GMail. It didn't work out too well at the end. The only thing Google did for them was, it informed them they they had been sold out to the US Government (in court).

Too late.

Loud Argument

The bottom line is, if Social Control Media lacks "presence" of Free software advocates, then so be it. It's a waste of time to wrestle with pigs.

The very concept - or the underlying idea - of Social Control Media is deeply flawed. It'll never be media or become social, as it tends to make journalists more lazy (i.e. less accuracy pursued) and it divides an otherwise cohesive society united around common themes. Society needs information instead of hate/conflict that drives up "engagement".

Other Recent Techrights' Posts

The Post Offices Have Turned Into Trash. They Swallow Packages and Only Spit Them Out If You Get Lucky.
Nom nom nom
Four Years of Videos (Self-Hosted, Not Social Control Multimedia)
Seeing how the "hey hi" (AI) hype spreads to GulagTube and ruins GulagTube, we're glad we need not worry about Google (Gulag) policing our "content" via supposedly 'free' (not really) platforms, such as GulagTube, the social control (multi)media "market leader"
We Already Know What Makes Techrights So Attractive to Online Abuse and Cybercrimes
Techrights helps explain how to dismantle the 'cancel culture' against Free software (it also names the key perpetrators)
Microsoft Controlling Apache by Proxy/ies
This is a broader attack on what "Open Source" actually means
In Case Undersea Cables Are Cut...
The issue has been somewhat of a taboo - mostly overlooked or entirely ignored at times of peace
 
"Microsoft suffered the next largest loss, down by 634,406 sites (-3.24%)"
Microsoft is now in only 2 of the 5 tables; over time Microsoft slips out of visibility in more categories
[Meme] Hiding From Bullies Not the Solution
‘The only thing necessary for the triumph [of evil] is for good men to do nothing.’
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Saturday, November 30, 2024
IRC logs for Saturday, November 30, 2024
If You Support Free - is in Freedom/Libre - Software, Then Support the Free Software Foundation (FSF)
2024 was the most productive year so far
CNN's Front Page is About 250 Times Heavier Than Techrights' (Also Far Slower)
Those who value performance and users' experience will give bloat the boot
[Meme] What 'Social Justice Warrior' Has Come to Mean by 2024
People who have long called themselves "SJW" aren't exactly any of those things
Two Years Later Sirius Open Source is Basically Dead (With a Zombie Web Site)
1 day from now it's exactly 2 years since Rianne and I resigned
[Meme] The Internet is More Fragile Than They Are Willing to Admit
If your site ready for a war on pipes and cables?
IBM is More Than 60 Billion Dollars in Debt (Which It Cannot Pay Back)
IBM debt is growing
IBM and Microsoft Fake Headcount in Exactly the Same Way (While Mass Layoffs Persist and Real Revenue Falls, Not Just Compared to Inflation Rates)
They convert profits into fake 'growth' instead of cashing in (so debt continues to soar), in effect gaming the system based on misleading metrics
Daniel Pocock Moved Up Two Spots in the Political Battles
He has made a statement about it<
Links 30/11/2024: Cable Cuts Under Investigation, America’s Cemeteries Are Rewilding, Panda Protection Money Misused
Links for the day
Understanding Irish general election 2024 results Dublin Bay South
Reprinted with permission from Daniel Pocock
Links 30/11/2024: Social Control Media Under Growing Scrutiny, Patent Propaganda Sites Still Promote a Fake Court (UPC)
Links for the day
Gemini Links 30/11/2024: SIGINT Foo and Hooking Up an Old Serial Terminal to a NetBSD Machine Over USB
Links for the day
Apache Software Foundation, Already Infiltrated by Microsoft for Well Over a Decade, Still Controlled by Proprietary Giants With Openwashing Agents
No wonder things get outsourced to Microsoft's proprietary prison (GitHub)
Tux Machines Turning Twenty a Half
Contact us if you want to join us and live not far from Manchester
Stable at Over 4% and 400+ Days' Uptime
Hopefully some time this weekend we'll find enough time to upload party photos (this site turning 18)
With a Month Left to Raise Money the Free Software Foundation (FSF) Has Already Raised 56,000 Dollars
December starts tomorrow
The Irish Have Voted, We'll Soon Know How Many Voted for a Debian Developer and Free Software Specialist
Dublin Bay South results
[Meme] The Word Security Has Been Redefined
"See what the media tells us?"
Proving Yet Again That Techrights Was Right About UEFI 'Secure Boot' All Along (Since 2012)
'Secure Boot' or 'secure' boot is about anything but security
[Meme] Growing Up and Becoming Sceptical
Social control media is a toxic weapon against what's true
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Friday, November 29, 2024
IRC logs for Friday, November 29, 2024
Reporting Information and Facts at Times of War (and Information Wars), Dissent of Merit and Scepticism//Critical Skills Impermissible
The world is full of white-collar crime, so the more people report, the better
Links 30/11/2024: More Strongarming and Threats to Taiwan, Ananda Krishnan is Dead
Links for the day
Links 29/11/2024: Hike at Potato Creek and Best SSG
Links for the day
Energy shock: €17,000 circuit court claim, threat of judgment for fraudulent charges
Reprinted with permission from Daniel Pocock
Brigid Purcell (PBP): generation Z, unteachable children, how will they govern in ten years?
Reprinted with permission from Daniel Pocock
Links 29/11/2024: Smithfield Market in London Shutting Down, BRICS (China) Accused of Validating Undersea Cables Based on New Evidence
Links for the day
Fentanylware (TikTok) Just Doing Exactly What It Was Supposed to Do
A senior official at Romania's telecoms watchdog called for Fentanylware (TikTok) to be suspended
Links 29/11/2024: China Tensions and Big Bounties for Invalidation of Software Patents
Links for the day
Daniel Pocock Explains Why People Should Vote for Him Today (General Election 2024)
Polling day in Ireland
[Meme] Microsoft and Bill Gates Controlling Media Coverage
Cautionary tale
More Microsoft Corruption and Cover-ups
The key point here is that Microsoft is a corrupt company that bribes officials and breaks every law in the books, then lies about it, covers things up, even bribes publishers to participate in the cover-up
Microsoft Fired Hundreds of Workers Days Before Thanksgiving
Maybe it's time for Microsoft shareholders to reassess the true wealth and well-being of Microsoft as a company
Typical Microsoft Bully (Paid by Microsoft)
Some Microsoft staff doesn't know boundaries
Threats, Attacks on Women, and Other Tactics of Microsofters Will Always Backfire
California: An Epicentre of Psychosis Influenced by Silicon Valley?
Rejecting Fake Holidays
In the US, today is the day after Thanksgiving and nothing els
8GB Swiss Archive offered to Irish voters by Dáil candidate
Mr Pocock doesn't take orders from cyberbullies
Ireland Goes to Polls, Here's Daniel Pocock's Leaflet (Running as Independent in Dublin Bay South)
He seems to be the only geek running for Office
Daniel Pocock: Why you should follow my RSS or Atom feed, Irish elections, everybody wins
Reprinted with permission from Daniel Pocock
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Thursday, November 28, 2024
IRC logs for Thursday, November 28, 2024