Still reflecting and listening to how different folks are reacting after the US #election results. A few immediate thoughts:* take care of yourselves, physically, emotionally, etc.* lean into mutual care, check on those close to you* (re)connect with community and especially those that reach out to you* (re)consider privacy implications of your actions, IRL & online, spending habits Here in #SanFrancisco and #California we are seeing mostly positive local results¹ including a new mayor (who I happened to rank first for many reasons).Lots to think about and do in the next couple of months.¹ https://sfstandard.com/2024/11/05/san-francisco-election-results-november-2024/
People and blogs involved with and about the IndieWeb community, the fediverse, and/or the open web in general.
Not much time to write today and tomorrow.
Noodling with something. I’m still waffling on what form it will take if it ships. Just a static, no-text placeholder website for now: micro.one
Thursday session
Thursday session
At the 38th 1/2 Street crossing. 🚂
Ben Werdmuller
• Ben Werdmuller
Why Democrats won't build their own Joe Rogan
[Taylor Lorenz at User Mag]
Gen Z men have lurched to the right, which was one factor behind this month's election result. This is, in part, because they've been inundated with media that speaks to a right-leaning point of view - and there's almost no counte...
Ben Werdmuller
• Ben Werdmuller
Social media is a symptom, not a cause
[Mathew Ingram at The Torment Nexus]
Mathew Ingram on blaming social media for the stratification of society:
"In the end, that is too simple an explanation, just as blaming the New York Times' coverage of the race is too simple, or accusing more than half of the American electorate of being too stupid to see Trump for what he really is. They saw it, and they voted for him anyway. That's the reality."
This piece does a good job of debunking the lingering idea that "fake news" swings elections, or that social media bubbles are responsible for multiple realities and "alternative facts". In fact, this is a process that has been ongoing since the 1990s, and social media is a mirror of it rather than the cause.
If you're looking for answers, you need to look elsewhere.
[Link]
My short-form podcast is back again! Timetable, episode 133, recorded today. It’s the best snapshot of how I’m feeling and what I want to do about it. Only 7 minutes long.
Information literacy and chatbots as search • Buttondown
buttondown.com/maiht3k/archive/information-literacy-and-chatbots-as-search/
If someone uses an LLM as a replacement for search, and the output they get is correct, this is just by chance. Furthermore, a system that is right 95% of the time is arguably more dangerous tthan one that is right 50% of the time. People will be more likely to trust the output, and likely less able to fact check the 5%.
Ben Werdmuller
• Ben Werdmuller
Non-profit newsrooms that speak truth to power
If you’re looking for signal, here are some non-profit newsrooms that speak truth to power on a national scale. You can follow all of them for free; all of them could also use your support.
ProPublica
ProPublica investigates abuses of power and betrayals of the public trust...
Daring Fireball: Kottke on the Art and Power of Hypertextual Writing
daringfireball.net/2024/11/kottke_on_the_art_and_power_of_hypertextual_writing
Hypertext links are an information-density multiplier.
The way I’ve long thought about it is that traditional writing — like for print — feels two-dimensional. Writing for the web adds a third dimension. It’s not an equal dimension, though. It doesn’t turn writing from a flat plane into a full three-dimensional cube. It’s still primarily about the same two dimensions as old-fashioned writing. What hypertext links provide is an extra layer of depth. Just the fact that the links are there — even if you, the reader, don’t follow them — makes a sentence read slightly differently. It adds meaning in a way that is unique to the web as a medium for prose.
When a country shows you who they are, believe them.
When a country shows you who they are, believe them.
When you don’t know what to do, create.
Ben Werdmuller
• Ben Werdmuller
A hypothesis about the Democrats
I’d like to share a hypothesis about the Democrats. It’s about money. It might not be true — it truly is a hypothesis — but I’d like to air it out and see what you think.
We have a lot of people in America who are suffering greatly. Dick Tofel put it like this:
“For more tha...
Ben Werdmuller
• Ben Werdmuller
What Now for the Press?
[Dick Tofel]
Dick Tofel on where the press should go next:
"We held a free and fair election, and the candidate who hates the press, who makes sport of threatening it physically and with censorship and muzzling, won. The campaign was fought across seven stat...
“I never thought the face-eating leopards would grab *my* pussy!”
“I never thought the face-eating leopards would grab my pussy!”
Decided today was a good day to burn the old home page to the ground and start over, for users who aren’t signed in. Embracing minimalism, calm, whimsy. Still a few things to improve… Let’s see where this goes.
I almost forgot: IndieWeb Meetup tonight in Austin, 7pm at Mozart’s Coffee.
Wednesday session
Wednesday session
My IndieWeb Journey
The slides from a lovely talk by Ana with an important message:
By having your own personal website you are as indie web as it gets. That’s right. Whether you participate in the IndieWeb community or not: by having your own personal website you are as indie web as it gets.