WesternInfidels

GPTurfing?

That annoys me as well. They call it “astroturfing” because it’s fake grassroots. I wonder if we should call this “cyberturfing.”

I don’t think the ownership of telecom was the important bit. It was the fact that, before 1996 or so, most PCs were not connected to the internet 100% of the time.

The security implications of pervasive, persistent internet connections meant software vendors had genuine security reasons to push frequent updates. That situation, with vendors pushing constant changes in the name of security, wound up offering vendors a lot of influence they didn’t have before.

This is exactly how, to choose just one familiar example, Microsoft is pushing users to have internet-validated Microsoft accounts, even to log in to their personal computers at home. “Want the security updates that come with Windows 11? You’ll have to let us watch you.” Which is just the way phones have been for longer.

I’ve only skimmed but:

provide an accessible interface at account setup

They don’t even define “account.” They have a definition of “account holder” that makes no sense.

Are all devices required to have user accounts? There was a time when home computers did not have such things.

Before the internet became de rigueur, more or less. So much of this kind of top-down-control culture has oozed into the PC world by showing up on phones – those always-on, internet-connected devices – first.

The steady exodus from Elon Musk’s X has benefited smaller, independent alternatives such as … German-developed Mastodon

So somebody took a look at the modern web and thought “Hey, this is pretty good, but you know what would make it even better? Even more shit you didn’t ask for popping up in your face with every click!”

There was a time when Amazon was not full of scummy rip-off products, when it was not playing games with prices, when it was not a cloud-computing powerhouse, and you know what happened?

That’s right, they crushed their adversaries (retail shopping) and earned billions in profits. They won.

But somehow that’s not enough winning, there isn’t enough winning until all the value has been vacuumed up from the world.

2026: Revealed: How Substack makes money from hosting Nazi newsletters

2025: Substack’s “Nazi problem” won’t go away after push notification apology

2024: Substack founders make statement that Nazis will be tolerated on the platform

2023: Substack Has a Nazi Problem

My first Fediverse account was on Pixelfed. I am nobody, but I immediately attracted a couple dozen followers. All blank profiles, all followed exactly five accounts, all suspiciously algorithmic names. They’ve all gone quiet.

Disingenuous social media participation is everywhere. I think we might call it “cyberturfing.”

It would be very helpful for my understanding to be able to see this content.

I can understand being curious, I’m curious too.

But it’s hard to imagine any circumstance that would make TikTok support’s responses seem reasonable in context. They’re claiming a right to remix your stuff (where “you” are a paying customer mind you) without your knowledge or consent, and then to disseminate that remix at their discretion.

The specifics of how they altered this ad are almost incidental by comparison.

…two mice fighting over crumbs…

This is the future the oligarchy wants

You’ll call me a curmudgeon for sure, but:

1. “75” is kind of a shit high score, with the scale going to 100 and all.

2. Demonstration of that point: LG is #2 with a score of 74, in spite of the fact that the terrible track record of their big-dollar linear-compressor fridges has made national news.

3. We might also note that the span of scores here is really small; it’s just 8 points on a scale of 100. How meaningful is all this?

4. CR’s reports like these are based on CR subscriber surveys. So they’re about consumer experience and sentiment for things bought brand new and generally things bought recently. I wouldn’t expect such a report to say much about lifespan or repair-ability.

I’ve been a CR subscriber forever. I keep thinking I should cancel, though, because I’m not prosperous enough to live the way their target audience apparently lives.

Oh no not another podcast gosh