Hamish Campbell<p><strong>The Fediverse is opening, but there is a cost</strong></p>
With the #Fediverse gaining increasing #mainstreaming attention, we’re entering a familiar cycle, an influx of well-funded #NGO-branded projects trying to "fix" the #openweb by reshaping it in their own narrowing and to often blinded paths.
Take this year’s #chatteringclass event, #FediForum. Alongside breathless praise, last year, for #Threads joining the #opensocialweb space, we’re seeing the launch of shiny new tools: #BonfireSocial, #Channelorg, #Bounce. That promise innovation […]
<p><a href="https://hamishcampbell.com/the-fediverse-is-opening-but-there-is-a-cost/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" translate="no" target="_blank"><span class="invisible">https://</span><span class="ellipsis">hamishcampbell.com/the-fediver</span><span class="invisible">se-is-opening-but-there-is-a-cost/</span></a></p>
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Hamish Campbell<p><strong>Telegram is dieing</strong></p>
Telegram partnering with Elon’s #AI to distribute #Grok inside chats is a clear line crossed. This matters because private data ≠ training fodder, bringing Grok (or any #LLM) into messaging apps opens the door to pervasive data harvesting and normalization of surveillance.This is an example of platform drift: Telegram was always sketchy (proprietary, central control, opaque funding), but this is active betrayal of its user base, especially those in repressive regions who relied on […]
<p><a href="https://hamishcampbell.com/telegram-is-dieing/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" translate="no" target="_blank"><span class="invisible">https://</span><span class="ellipsis">hamishcampbell.com/telegram-is</span><span class="invisible">-dieing/</span></a></p>
Hamish Campbell<p><strong>The false continuity</strong></p>
What we have now is context collapse and the false continuity of liberalism. Academic and policy discussions often assume that the current liberal framework will somehow persist, that the road ahead is bumpy but ultimately paved. But climate science, geopolitics, and resource decline say otherwise. The liberal "centre" cannot hold under these pressures. Equatorial regions, facing escalating climate collapse, are the canary in the coal mine, they are slipping into post-political spaces where […]
<p><a href="https://hamishcampbell.com/the-false-continuity/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" translate="no" target="_blank"><span class="invisible">https://</span><span class="ellipsis">hamishcampbell.com/the-false-c</span><span class="invisible">ontinuity/</span></a></p>
witchescauldron<p>“Use and abuse” is a good strategy for dealing with the <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/dotcons" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>dotcons</span></a> while they continue to dominate our digital and social infrastructure. Why? Because refusing to engage with these platforms outright is the equivalent of shouting into the void - or living in a cave. And caves, while romantic to a certain type of purist, are never effective social solutions.</p><p>The truth is this <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/dotcons" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>dotcons</span></a> are still where the <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/mainstreaming" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>mainstreaming</span></a> people live, and mainstream attention is power, even if borrowed. As radicals or progressives, using their platforms to push counter-narratives, while simultaneously undermining their legitimacy and building our own <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/openweb" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>openweb</span></a> independent infrastructure, is both necessary and strategic. Think of it as exiting from within by using their reach to grow the seeds of our native alt-path.</p>
Hamish Campbell<p><strong>Maybe we don’t then get the guillotine out…</strong></p>
Because current #mainstreaming, centrism, comfy pointless political “maturity” worked out so well, the last time we had a hard shift to the far right in the 1930s. Those "well-meaning" liberals at the time were patted on the back for their reasoned takes and rewarded for their civility right before it ended in a world war. That’s the dirty compost of history we’re all standing in today.
Fast-forward 100 years and today’s centrist are pretending not to smell the rot, their […]
<p><a href="https://hamishcampbell.com/maybe-we-dont-then-get-the-guillotine-out/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" translate="no" target="_blank"><span class="invisible">https://</span><span class="ellipsis">hamishcampbell.com/maybe-we-do</span><span class="invisible">nt-then-get-the-guillotine-out/</span></a></p>
Hamish Campbell<p><strong>The Mess – If You Don’t Value Things, You Destroy Them</strong></p>
DRAFT
We live under a system, global capitalism, where value is determined not by care, connection, or any collective well-being, but by market logic. If something is not valued in that narrow logic, it is treated as waste. If you don't actively value the alternatives - you will "accidentally" destroy them. This applies to tech, culture, nature, and community.Tech has a problem of misplaced value, people still keep using #mainstreaming tools - the platforms and apps of the #dotcons - […]
<p><a href="https://hamishcampbell.com/the-mess-if-you-dont-value-things-you-destroy-them/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" translate="no" target="_blank"><span class="invisible">https://</span><span class="ellipsis">hamishcampbell.com/the-mess-if</span><span class="invisible">-you-dont-value-things-you-destroy-them/</span></a></p>
Hamish Campbell<p><strong>The #nastyfew, billionaires funders fear informed, educated public</strong></p>
The #nastyfew are now building bunkers, literally, escaping with their bodyguards when the shit hits the fan. That’s the plan. No fixing the mess, no community care - just winning and escape. It’s #deathcult logic all the way down from now on - with pushing #geekproblem tech fixes as a cross fingers wing and a prayer, to stop any grassroots drift to green sustainable alternatives.
This is simply the next stage of the #deathcult worship of endless growth, and infinite tech […]
<p><a href="https://hamishcampbell.com/the-nastyfew-billionaires-funders-fear-informed-educated-public/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" translate="no" target="_blank"><span class="invisible">https://</span><span class="ellipsis">hamishcampbell.com/the-nastyfe</span><span class="invisible">w-billionaires-funders-fear-informed-educated-public/</span></a></p>
witchescauldron<p><a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/dotcons" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>dotcons</span></a> fail human connection, as people become more aware of bots replacing humans, the sense of authenticity diminishes, particularly among those who value any real social connections. <a href="https://hamishcampbell.com/dotcons-fail-human-connection/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" translate="no" target="_blank"><span class="invisible">https://</span><span class="ellipsis">hamishcampbell.com/dotcons-fai</span><span class="invisible">l-human-connection/</span></a></p>
Hamish Campbell<p><strong>Without discomfort, we won’t challenge the roots of the system we’re still living inside</strong></p>
A core problem we’ve inherited from the last ten years of corporate social media, the #dotcons, is the toxic confusion of the personal and the public. Platforms like #Facebook and #Twitter blurred the lines between private conversation and public broadcasting, monetizing both as if they were the same. That mess wasn’t accidental; it was profitable.
Unfortunately, we’ve reproduced this mess on the #Fediverse without properly composting it first. What does that mean? We’ve taken this […]
<p><a href="https://hamishcampbell.com/without-discomfort-we-wont-challenge-the-roots-of-the-system-were-still-living-inside/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" translate="no" target="_blank"><span class="invisible">https://</span><span class="ellipsis">hamishcampbell.com/without-dis</span><span class="invisible">comfort-we-wont-challenge-the-roots-of-the-system-were-still-living-inside/</span></a></p>
Hamish Campbell<p>The choice between <a class="hashtag" href="https://bsky.app/search?q=%23Mastodon" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#Mastodon</a> and <a class="hashtag" href="https://bsky.app/search?q=%23Bluesky" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#Bluesky</a> reflects a broader conflict between decentralisation and <a class="hashtag" href="https://bsky.app/search?q=%23dotcons" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#dotcons</a> corporate control. Public Social Media: The Choice is Clear <a href="https://hamishcampbell.com/public-social-media-the-choice-is-clear/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">hamishcampbell.com/public-socia...</a><br><br><a href="https://hamishcampbell.com/public-social-media-the-choice-is-clear/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Public Social Media: The Choic...</a></p>
witchescauldron<p>The choice between <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/Mastodon" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Mastodon</span></a> and <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/Bluesky" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Bluesky</span></a> reflects a broader conflict between decentralisation and <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/dotcons" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>dotcons</span></a> corporate control. Public Social Media: The Choice is Clear <a href="https://hamishcampbell.com/public-social-media-the-choice-is-clear/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" translate="no" target="_blank"><span class="invisible">https://</span><span class="ellipsis">hamishcampbell.com/public-soci</span><span class="invisible">al-media-the-choice-is-clear/</span></a></p>
Hamish Campbell<p><strong>It’s long past time to return to the #openweb, and compost this mess making</strong></p>
We used to run 6 #Fediverse instances as part of the #OMN project - thousands of users across them. Admin/mod work was done by volunteers, grounded in user reports, contextual judgment, and dialogue. No hard rules. Just common sense and solidarity. It worked for 4–5 years.
Then came the #Twitter liberal influx - intolerant, entitled, and completely disconnected from #mutualaid and community care. They treated our volunteer-run platforms as if they were corporate #dotcons, shouting into […]
<p><a href="https://hamishcampbell.com/its-long-past-time-to-return-to-the-openweb-and-compost-this-mess-making/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" translate="no" target="_blank"><span class="invisible">https://</span><span class="ellipsis">hamishcampbell.com/its-long-pa</span><span class="invisible">st-time-to-return-to-the-openweb-and-compost-this-mess-making/</span></a></p>
witchescauldron<p>The <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/OMN" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>OMN</span></a> is built on a simple, powerful truth: "This is the Internet."</p><p>GET<br>PUT<br>POST<br>DELETE<br>–MERGE–</p><p>These basic actions — close to the core HTTP verbs every website uses — are all you need to create, share, remix, and grow.<br>(From RFC 7231 and RFC 5789.)</p><p>Then you have the <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/4opens" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>4opens</span></a> which are about reclaiming the grassroots social power of the web:</p><p> Open data</p><p> Open source</p><p> Open process</p><p> Open standards</p><p>No gatekeepers. No <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/dotcons" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>dotcons</span></a> middlemen. No closed silos. Just people, building together. This is what <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/openweb" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>openweb</span></a> reboot looks like.</p><p><a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/nothingnew" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>nothingnew</span></a></p>
witchescauldron<p>In the <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/openweb" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>openweb</span></a> and <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/Fediverse" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Fediverse</span></a> spaces, it's worth remembering: Many people only value things once they’re validated by <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/mainstreaming" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>mainstreaming</span></a> sources. This is narrow, blinded behaviour — the kind that keeps the <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/deathcult" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>deathcult</span></a> fed.</p><p>If you only see value through the lens of <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/dotcons" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>dotcons</span></a> algorithms, you’re missing 90% of what actually matters.</p><p>A lot of the “famous” people in <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/mainstreaming" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>mainstreaming</span></a> — even on alt spaces — are assholes. Not because fame makes you bad, but because climbing the algorithm's ladder requires selfishness, ego, and conformity.</p><p>On alt platforms, sure, we have "our" assholes, that's life. But our assholes can be challenged, mediated, and composted into something better. On the <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/mainstreaming" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>mainstreaming</span></a> side? They're more shit on the corporate pile.</p><p>Please, don't bow down to them. Stay critical. Stay rooted. Keep your shovel handy. </p><p><a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/4opens" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>4opens</span></a> <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/nothingnew" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>nothingnew</span></a> <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/techcurn" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>techcurn</span></a> <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/fashernista" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>fashernista</span></a></p>
witchescauldron<p>In tech, the last 20 years have been a mess of <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/fashernista" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>fashernista</span></a> trends and the ongoing <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/geekproblem" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>geekproblem</span></a>, a compost heap of broken promises and abandoned projects. It's obvious if you lift the lid and really look. The glossy hype fades fast, the rot underneath remains.</p><p>Much of what we call "innovation" ended up as <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/techshit" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>techshit</span></a> - rushed, bloated, short-sighted code that needs serious composting if we’re going to grow anything real. <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/Openweb" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Openweb</span></a> dreams have been buried under a <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/dotcons" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>dotcons</span></a> landfill.</p><p>The real challenge now isn’t just pointing at the pile (fun as that can be), it's handing the next generation proper shovels - real tools, real critical thinking, real spaces for building rooted, resilient, open tech.</p><p>A hopeful note: some <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/fashernistas" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>fashernistas</span></a> are starting to apologize and acknowledge the mess. That's good compost material too. Let's keep composting. Let's keep planting.</p>
hamish campbell<p>The pushing of encryption in everything is currently dysfunctional in <a href="https://mastodon.social/tags/Foss" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Foss</span></a> and <a href="https://mastodon.social/tags/openweb" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>openweb</span></a> paths <a href="https://www.facebook.com/help/597429858389632/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" translate="no" target="_blank"><span class="invisible">https://www.</span><span class="ellipsis">facebook.com/help/597429858389</span><span class="invisible">632/</span></a> the family call on <a href="https://mastodon.social/tags/failbook" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>failbook</span></a> refuses to open in <a href="https://mastodon.social/tags/Firefox" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Firefox</span></a> only works in <a href="https://mastodon.social/tags/dotcons" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>dotcons</span></a> browsers or the app.</p>
Hamish Campbell<p><strong>Not to punish the individuals, but to highlight the groups to compost</strong></p>
One of the most corrosive problems on the path to rebooting the #openweb is the nasty, unconscious blocking that seeps through all #mainstreaming and careerist #NGO spaces. It’s not usually overt, it doesn’t come with a clear “no.” It comes with silence, with being ignored. With polite nods and a quick pivot back to safe, fundable, middle-of-the-road ideas that don’t rock the boat. This is how real change is smothered, how compost we need becomes concrete we are trying to break […]
<p><a href="https://hamishcampbell.com/not-to-punish-the-individuals-but-to-highlight-the-groups-to-compost/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" translate="no" target="_blank"><span class="invisible">https://</span><span class="ellipsis">hamishcampbell.com/not-to-puni</span><span class="invisible">sh-the-individuals-but-to-highlight-the-groups-to-compost/</span></a></p>
witchescauldron<p>The <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/OMN" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>OMN</span></a> is a simple but radical project to shift power decisively from the <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/geekproblem" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>geekproblem</span></a> and the <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/dotcons" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>dotcons</span></a> back to the people who actually make media, the grassroots producers.</p><p>From this shared “commons,” a new digital, economic, and social ecosystem can grow that is messy, open, and native to our needs.</p><p>And as with everything human, what we do with that power is up to us.</p>
Hamish Campbell<p><strong>From unstoppable slop, to #enshittification, the #FT on the internet is adding to the mess</strong></p>
#Mainstreaming talk about the internet generally completely misses the point, yep, it’s the FT so no surprise I suppose. The actual internet, the one we built before the takeover of the #dotcons, this is a culture of #4opens protocols, stitched together with moth-eaten mythologies and some messy traditions. It was never clean or pure, but it was ours.
What this guy in the article is describing isn’t the internet, it’s the #dotcons layer that’s been built on top of that original […]
<p><a href="https://hamishcampbell.com/from-unstoppable-slop-to-enshittification-the-ft-on-the-internet-mess/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" translate="no" target="_blank"><span class="invisible">https://</span><span class="ellipsis">hamishcampbell.com/from-unstop</span><span class="invisible">pable-slop-to-enshittification-the-ft-on-the-internet-mess/</span></a></p>
witchescauldron<p><span class="h-card" translate="no"><a href="https://tldr.nettime.org/@remixtures" class="u-url mention" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">@<span>remixtures</span></a></span> this kinda missies the point, yep it's the <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/FT" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>FT</span></a> so no surprise there. The actual internet is a culture of <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/4opens" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>4opens</span></a> protocols, held together by s moth-eaten mythology and traditions. What the guy is talking about, and mistakes for this, is the <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/dotcons" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>dotcons</span></a> that has been built, we have built with our attention, on top of this original <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/4opens" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>4opens</span></a> foundations.</p><p>Yes it's a mess, but what we to often do is add to the mess rather than compost it :)</p><p><a href="https://hamishcampbell.com/from-unstoppable-slop-to-enshittification-the-ft-on-the-internet-mess/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" translate="no" target="_blank"><span class="invisible">https://</span><span class="ellipsis">hamishcampbell.com/from-unstop</span><span class="invisible">pable-slop-to-enshittification-the-ft-on-the-internet-mess/</span></a></p>
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