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Twitter likely to take idiots offer to buy them for $43 billion

Loren Pechtel said:
Jimmy Higgins said:
Loren Pechtel said:
lpetrich said:
Author Amanda Marcotte then continues "This notion of Musk's intelligence clings to the discourse around him for one simple reason: He is very, very rich." and "You probably would have never heard of Elon Musk if he wasn't a white man from a wealthy family that literally owned an emerald mine in South Africa."
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We know of Musk because of SpaceX.

I still can't understand how he could have accomplished that with the utter ineptitude he's displaying about Twitter.
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Part of it is Twitter is nothing like Tesla. He is way outside his sphere.
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I'm not impressed with Tesla, either.

SpaceX, though, is a genuine breakthrough.
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Again, somebody elses idea. It shows that if you throw enough money at a problem you can probably fix it.
 
TSwizzle said:
The anguish Elon Musk elicits from some quarters is fascinating. Here’s a guy, trying to save the planet and people are rounding on him like he has just pissed in their corn flakes.
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It is strange. He's done some great things. The internet has allowed the pants-shitting shrill to metastasize into these little groups that subsequently have an outsized voice (see the anti J.K. Rowling crowd).

At the same time though, why would Musk give the slightest two shits about people like that? This transformation from super-rich kid wanting to do good to cartoon super villain is just weird. How does someone with so much wealth have such thin skin? Did no one ever tell him that not everyone is going to like him all the time and that's just part of life, especially when it comes to being a celebrity?

His reaction to these powerless screaming meemies is more like that of a tantrum throwing toddler than a grown man. It would be funny if he weren't on the verge of re-platforming the most prolific drooling self-centered sack of human skin stuffed with shit in American history along with those who support that thing.
 
TSwizzle said:
The anguish Elon Musk elicits from some quarters is fascinating. Here’s a guy, trying to save the planet and people are rounding on him like he has just pissed in their corn flakes.
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Interestingly, I don’t think it is anguish at all. Just distaste and the invisible hand of the free market.
 
TSwizzle said:
The anguish Elon Musk elicits from some quarters is fascinating. Here’s a guy, trying to save the planet and people are rounding on him like he has just pissed in their corn flakes.
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Doing a good thing doesn't make you a hero in all contexts. Doing a bad thing doesn't make you a villain in all contexts. Doing a good thing should not make you immune from criticism, nor does criticizing someone imply that you are no longer giving them credit for the good thing they did. People over the mental age of six tend to understand this.
 
Colonel Sanders said:
TSwizzle said:
The anguish Elon Musk elicits from some quarters is fascinating. Here’s a guy, trying to save the planet and people are rounding on him like he has just pissed in their corn flakes.
Click to expand...

It is strange. He's done some great things. The internet has allowed the pants-shitting shrill to metastasize into these little groups that subsequently have an outsized voice (see the anti J.K. Rowling crowd).

At the same time though, why would Musk give the slightest two shits about people like that? This transformation from super-rich kid wanting to do good to cartoon super villain is just weird. How does someone with so much wealth have such thin skin? Did no one ever tell him that not everyone is going to like him all the time and that's just part of life, especially when it comes to being a celebrity?
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Musk thin skinned?! LOL!! So many precious snowflakes are losing their shit and throwing their toys out the pram, waaaaaa!! It's hilarious that people people get so worked up about it but it is weird.

Colonel Sanders said:
His reaction to these powerless screaming meemies is more like that of a tantrum throwing toddler than a grown man. It would be funny if he weren't on the verge of re-platforming the most prolific drooling self-centered sack of human skin stuffed with shit in American history along with those who support that thing.
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Oh my, the TDS is strong in this one.
 
Politesse said:
TSwizzle said:
The anguish Elon Musk elicits from some quarters is fascinating. Here’s a guy, trying to save the planet and people are rounding on him like he has just pissed in their corn flakes.
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Doing a good thing doesn't make you a hero in all contexts. Doing a bad thing doesn't make you a villain in all contexts. Doing a good thing should not make you immune from criticism, nor does criticizing someone imply that you are no longer giving them credit for the good thing they did. People over the mental age of six tend to understand this.
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Show me on the doll where Elon touched you.
 
TSwizzle said:
Politesse said:
TSwizzle said:
The anguish Elon Musk elicits from some quarters is fascinating. Here’s a guy, trying to save the planet and people are rounding on him like he has just pissed in their corn flakes.
Click to expand...
Doing a good thing doesn't make you a hero in all contexts. Doing a bad thing doesn't make you a villain in all contexts. Doing a good thing should not make you immune from criticism, nor does criticizing someone imply that you are no longer giving them credit for the good thing they did. People over the mental age of six tend to understand this.
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Show me on the doll where Elon touched you.
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You need to read my post again. If you're able to.
 
 
Twitter layoffs worry election officials, politicians - The Washington Post - "With half of the company gone, political campaigns are gripped with anxiety over how to address election misinformation and potential threats"
Devastating cuts to Twitter’s workforce on Friday, four days before the midterm elections, are fueling anxieties among political campaigns and election offices that have counted on the social network’s staff to help them combat violent threats and viral lies.

The mass layoffs Friday gutted teams devoted to combating election misinformation, adding context to misleading tweets and communicating with journalists, public officials and campaign staff.

The layoffs included a number of people who were scheduled to be on call this weekend and early next week to monitor for signs of foreign disinformation, spam and other problematic content around the election, one former employee told The Washington Post. As of Friday morning, employee access to internal tools used for content moderation continued to be restricted, limiting staff’s ability to respond to misinformation.

Twitter had become one of America’s most influential platforms for spreading accurate voting information, and the days before elections have often been critical moments where company and campaign officials kept up a near-constant dialogue about potential risks.

But a representative from one of the national party committees said they are seeing hours-long delays in responses from their contacts at Twitter, raising fears of the toll workplace chaos and sudden terminations is taking on the platform’s ability to quickly react to developments. The representative spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the matter’s sensitivity.
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Rhea said:
TSwizzle said:
The anguish Elon Musk elicits from some quarters is fascinating. Here’s a guy, trying to save the planet and people are rounding on him like he has just pissed in their corn flakes.
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Interestingly, I don’t think it is anguish at all. Just distaste and the invisible hand of the free market.
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It is beyond distaste. But very entertaining.
 
AOC to Trump: Everyone is giving Twitter suggestions Elon Musk - The Washington Post
“It’s almost comedic in how he is live tweeting, stumbling through his ideas and how he’s going to make this platform work,” said Brandie Nonnecke, founding director of the CITRIS Policy Lab at the University of California at Berkeley, which studies technology policy.

...
Musk’s tweets have attracted the attention of Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), novelist Stephen King — but also right-wing influencers and others now looking to speak to the Twitter boss.
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Is social network Mastodon the new alternative to Twitter? | Mashable
Twitter is now Elon Musk's Twitter: the platform is a new world in itself, transforming as Musk courts advertisers and plays around with monetization plans. These changes, compounded with Musk's constant chaotic insistence on outraging the public, has some users migrating, seeking new homes for their everyday musings (though too many are taking pleasure in announcing that choice).
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noting
Kathy Griffin on Twitter: "I’m kinda liking Mastodon. @guardian has a great explainer on how to start.
Ps Cue the “leave now you irrelevant unfunny ugly b*tch” replies here on this musky app. (pic link)" / Twitter

Mastodon, a social media platform that's been around for about six years, has emerged as a potential and popular choice. The very day of Musk's takeover, Mastodon gained 70,000 new users. As of yesterday, it's grown to host 655,000 active users.

The network is an interesting one. As their ironic Twitter account points out, Mastodon can "never be sold" and actually gives power to its users. It's also been described as a left-leaning, and a "decidedly less toxic" mecca of communication compared to its peers.
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Mastodon posts: toots
But unlike Twitter, content on Mastodon doesn't fall under one communal space. Mastodon is decentralized; the platform has a network of servers which are called "instances".
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Users must choose a server, and servers have a variety of specialties. Servers like kpop.social - for K-Pop fans - and tech.lgbt - a community for tech workers "who are LGBTQIA+ or allies"
 
How to Join the Twitter Alternative Mastodon - "A short primer how to join the great #TwitterMigration and what to expect from the servers you join."

It's author tried Mastodon six months ago, but didn't stick with it. "In the few days since (mostly) ditching Twitter, I’ve gained a new respect for the platform, which is decidedly less toxic and is far more conversational and troll-free."
Basically, Mastodon is a Twitter alternative with a few special distinctions worth knowing upfront. It has most of the basic functionality you get with Twitter (known on Mastodon as “the birdsite”): It has a timeline or “feed” made up of what are essentially tweets, called “toots,” posted by the users you follow. You can favorite these toots or “boost” them to your own followers, which is just like retweeting. When you toot at other users, these posts appear on the timelines of users who follow you both. You can also bookmark toots and create lists of users showing only their toots — features that, as a Twitter user, you should already be accustomed to. All timelines, by the way, are strictly chronological. There’s no AI-based ranking involved.
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Mastodon is decentralized.
Anyone can create their own Mastodon instance and write their own rules for it, deciding who’s allowed to join and how content gets moderated. The key thing to know here is, all of these instances are capable of communicating with each other.

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This is what’s known as a “federated” network. Mastodon is itself just one app that’s part of a much larger federation of apps known as the Fediverse.

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Mastodon allows for these cross-platform conversations because, despite having many different owners, nearly all of the Fediverse’s apps share a common language.

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Moderation-wise, the owners of each server set their own rules. And while, yes, this technically means they’re free to allow any kind of content they wish, there’s nothing forcing one Mastodon instance to connect to another.

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To quote Feditips: “The worse a server behaves, the more other servers will block it, and the very worst-behaved servers will find themselves completely isolated.”
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Mastodon is one of many similar apps.
One thing few people realize is that Mastodon is just one of many open-source apps in the Fediverse. The Fediverse hosts apps with all kinds of purposes and nearly all use the same protocol as Mastodon (known as ActivityPub) allowing for many degrees of interoperability. The chart below shows some of these apps, which include platforms for writing, hosting videos, music, and books, and even include a few paid subscriber-based services.
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More on Mastodon.
Instances are often distinguished by common interest, region, or language.

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Each instance is run by a different person who decides the rules.

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In addition to your “Home” timeline, which shows only the toots of people you follow, you’ll gain access to a “Local” timeline, which only shows public posts on your instance.
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What is the place like?
I’m going to refrain from trying to characterize Mastodon in political terms because few people on the network would say that’s appropriate. That said, the Fediverse is a very inclusive place and I haven’t encountered any instance myself willing to put up with bigotry of any kind. Mastodon is also more common among people with technical careers and hobbies, like programming and hacking, and there’s been a recent big wave of scholars joining the network.

Another feature, which users seem encouraged to apply very liberally, is the content warning. You can hide any media behind a warning, and people use them for all sorts of reasons. There’s virtually no reason not to do this. All the warnings do is blur images and give users more freedom to decide what content they’d like to consume. You can add a brief description to give them an idea of what’s hidden, such as “politics” or “NSFW”.

Many people are using content warnings to hide posts about Twitter. New users realizing how damaging the birdsite has been to their mental health is a pretty common experience. A lot of people seem to be waking up to the fact that they’ve been addicted to it, and that it’s encouraged them to behave very poorly toward others. So while it’s still common to see screenshots of tweets on Mastodon, at least some users are kindly doing what they can to help others move on and restore emotional balance to their lives.
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Then a section on "Why is it slow?"
Instances cost money to run, so admin usually only pay to accommodate the volume of users they have at any given time.

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It’s also worth noting, while Mastodon may look like Twitter, people use it very differently. Some helpful advice I received early on was to try and refrain from replying to every post I saw. The pace is just generally much more calm. And for that reason, it’s also less addictive.
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Then explaining that the inability to quote others' toots is a feature and not a bug.

Mastodon uses hashtags, much like Twitter, hashtags like #introductions and #TwitterMigration

"A large of number of academics seem to have flocked to the Fediverse recently, and they’ve been creating and putting out lists to attract followers." like
  • Privacy, security and tech policy scholars
  • Lawyers and legal academics
  • Political scientists

Verification? "Because there’s no central authority, it is not possible to verify accounts."
 
Mastodon gained 70,000 users after Musk’s Twitter takeover. I joined them | Social media | The Guardian - "The platform is home to a devoted base of left-leaning communities – and no one billionaire can control it"

"Twitter’s co-founder Jack Dorsey is beta testing a new app called Bluesky, but there’s no launch date yet." - The AT Protocol - Bluesky

Back to The Grauniad, as it's sometimes called.
I joined Mastodon this week, and it took a few hours just to master its new vocabulary. Some of it is a little silly-sounding: instead of tweets, you have “toots”. Things get trickier after that. Mastodon is not a single website but a network of thousands of websites called “instances”, also called servers. These servers are “federated”, which means they are run by different entities but can still communicate with each other without needing to go through a central system. And the space they all exist in is called the “fediverse”, which some savvy tooters call “the Fedi”.

When you sign up for Mastodon, the first thing you do is choose a server. There are general-purpose ones, such as mastodon.social, as well as ones aimed at interest groups, such as kpop.social or linuxrocks.online. There are also joke servers like dolphin.town, where the only thing users are allowed to post is the letter “e”.

The server becomes part of your username (for example, wilfred@kpop.social), and the toots you see on your feed are toots from your server-mates, rather than from the entire fediverse. But you’re also free to toot at people from other servers and even “boost” their public toots on to your feed.

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But Mastodon’s model comes with its own risks. If the server you join disappears, you could lose everything, just like if your email provider shut down. A Mastodon server admin also has ultimate control over everything you do ...

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Rochko said new users should scrutinize who runs a server before they join it: “Is it an organization that has a track record, is trustworthy, is likely to be around for a long time, but also has a moderation policy?” The “good ones”, he explained, “have rules against hate speech, and provide basic necessities like backups, so if one of the admins gets hit by a bus, the server does not disappear.” Rochko added that Mastodon includes a list of vetted servers on its homepage that meet these criteria. But it’s still a tall ask for a brand new user to figure these things out on their own.
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Brandon is butthurt about Musk too;

President Joe Biden on Friday called out Elon Musk, saying the billionaire had purchased a social media platform that "spews lies all across the world."

"Elon Musk goes out and buys an outfit that spews lies all across the world. There's no editors anymore in America," he added.
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CNN

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters earlier that Biden has been "outspoken about the importance of social media platforms continuing to take steps to reduce the spread misinformation,"[/b
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Irony meter just broke.
 
While technically anyone can spin up a Mastodon server, most users agree that the network has a left-leaning bent. Mastodon’s list of vetted servers include queer-themed and climate justice-oriented instances; to be included on the list, a server must agree to the Mastodon Server Covenant, which requires “active moderation against racism, sexism, homophobia and transphobia”. Rochko said his work wasn’t specifically left- or right-leaning but simply abided by “basic, basic beliefs that I have about social networks, and that is, for example, that hate speech should not be allowed”.
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Mastodon Server Covenant - Mastodon
  1. Active moderation against racism, sexism, homophobia and transphobia
  2. Daily backups
  3. At least one other person with emergency access to the server infrastructure
  4. Commitment to give users at least 3 months of advance warning in case of shutting down
Server descriptions ought to contain the following:
  • Short description
  • Thumbnail
  • Language
  • Rules
  • Contact information
Servers ought to avoid:
  • Blocking major e-mail providers
  • Running in limited-federation mode
 
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