🇨🇦 Thinker, Hoarder. I gather news and current events to outline and identify issues with a Canadian point of view.
I often wonder as well because being a news reader makes me assume others are also following the news more closely than myself. When I test this theory by talking to people around me, I learn that maybe I’m more alone than I thought.
At least with social media I get to follow the news with all of you, my fellow nerds
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I wanted to add that while it’s good to talk about LLM’s, part of this discussion is to explore either alternatives to their use or ways to partner the use of LLM’s with real human interaction. CEO Hawk for Discourse recently shared a blog post deep dive into Digg, and offers how Discourse has features in place to build trust in users and the community as a whole. Some of these features involve turning on email sign ups, a tiered system of membership that builds trust over time and engagement that opens up more options to the user (increased post limits, access to chat, increased edit limits, options to attach files). As I recall, this includes badges that can be visible to the community to demonstrate progress and acceptance.
https://blog.discourse.org/2026/05/the-digg-lesson-why-moderation-infrastructure-matters/
I recognize that CEO Hawk takes a similar view of LLM’s in the sense that there’s a concern if LLM use is rampant, then a community cannot differentiate between authentic engagement vs the concern I raised of astroturfing. I agree that this is a threat to proper discussion, and the Fediverse must answer this threat. I do agree that a “trust system” does provide a lot of answers, and in some ways PieFed has already introduced some of these trust based features.
I think the use of AI or LLMs for the Fediverse is a fair topic of discussion. Instances are run by volunteers, and these instances are free to dictate how their communities are to be administered. These Instance Admins can determine the jurisdictions that they operate under, and the laws that they are subject to. I’d suggest then the use of “AI” or LLM products are a choice made by each Instance.
But, just as Instance admins have these powerful choices, I believe that end users should also be given notice that these products are expected to be used so they can decide to continue with their account or move. I also recall that when many “Redditors” decided to leave, they also made a lot of fuss about salting their posts so that their contents not be used as training material to develop a commercial LLM. I’d point out this was a time when Meta and others were found to be combing the internet, downloading pirated materials, and using these for training purposes.
In 2026, these LLMs have already taken these pirated materials and public social media posts. There are news articles of how failed start-ups are even selling their Slack and other work related chats as training materials as well. In time, perhaps these issues can be properly litigated in courts. But for social media Instances run by volunteers, resources are limited already. I don’t think these Instances should be responsible for the privacy of the end users. Rather, good education in generating throw-away email addresses, strong passwords, and VPN use can give users real choices.
While there’s an argument that posts should not have any expectation of privacy, that doesn’t mean we don’t collectively share an interest in the value of privacy - a human right. I don’t believe users who sign up for accounts on the Fediverse and are asked for their email to set up an account, expect in turn that information to just be published to the world with full, open access without some kind of notice or choice to opt out, for example. Ultimately though, I believe the issue must be dealt with at the government level, and that means people getting pitted against professional lobbyists and politicians.
I want to also clarify that there will also be times when intervention is necessary. We’re here to join together in community, and “AI” or LLM activity that ultimately attacks that objective should be a top issue. For example, I’m not sure anyone here would be comfortable with “AI” duplicating an Instance and impersonating the community members within it. Yet that did happen on Mastodon. I recall the community responding, making reports and complaints to ultimately get the instance taken down. Another example would be AI or LLM accounts that do not identify themselves as bots, and are here to post on the Fediverse to astroturf issues or manipulate discussion are clear threats to proper discussion.
But I don’t want to digress too far from the original concern, which was how people feel about LLMs processing Fediverse posts, and related issues. Assuming we are not discussing materials that are already restricted or illegal, we cannot control what people choose to share on these platforms of themselves, and I don’t suggest we even attempt or consider it. But we can try to control how much information these platforms retain about its users - and I suggest that should be as close to zero or nil as possible. In this way, even if an Instance admin faces terrible pressure from a state, the platform itself has as close to nothing additional to report or share besides the face value posts of an account.
I’d also want to point out that we all do some form of labelling or profiling as we go over posts or read. Is there a difference between what we do already, and what an LLM does to create an opinion to profile a collection of posts? Humans get it wrong all the time, as would any LLM for that matter. Computers are valued because they’re good at copying and pasting information. What changed exactly if one person copy and pastes for free and for themselves, vs another who copy and pastes on behalf of a third party for a fee? I’m not really inviting philosophical discussion, this is mostly a question for myself. Whether the copy and paste procedure is done once by hand or thousands of times by computer, I’m still weighing the question.
I think it comes down to exploitation of asymmetric information and the appropriate use of the profits from this exploitation. But I suppose that’s always been an evergreen issue.
A related question that comes to mind is what jurisdiction’s laws should we all be exploring to avoid age verification completely?
I’m not suggesting we all get legal degrees or dispense legal advice, but as conscientious people who are also literate: Should the Fediverse identify lists of these jurisdictions for its community of small to very large instances, and resources to help decide whether those laws of favourable jursidictions should be adopted and some common pitfalls?
We all see the headlines of countries exploring bans on under 16s for social media in the name of improved ad and online surveillance. Which are the countries who are saying no or will resist this?
This is PR and American propaganda for the real sauce last month where Reddit, Meta, and Google basically assumed the proper position and voluntarily gave DHS info.
They suffered reputational damage, and this is their government compensation package: a promotional up-do.
I’ll walk that comment back. I’ve only heard of suspicions or allegations of the use of hypersonic missiles. But so far I haven’t come across anything more concrete.
Also another point to make, in cynical fashion, Trump remains in power as because he brings profit to all of the correct gate keepers in American politics. If enough disruption to that petro-state to US loop occurs to shake the rattle the US economy, will the US voter finally awaken to its own self-interest and engage the system of checks and balances that the Americans are so fond of mentioning? Even outside readers can see that the US Justice system is corrupted, the use of dark money and the rise of the US billionaires are uncontrollable, and the power within that country is out of balance.
I’ll point out the obvious that the “average” American voter is actually poor, lower class, and on the verge of financial ruin on a day-to-day basis. Will a multipolar world order, a group of states, have the audacity to re-ignite this mentally beat down US public. I think the world, and even Iran, can benefit from that scenario.
Can they succeed?
If the status quo continues, US dysfunction with its out of control billionaire classes will continue to lash at the world itself with their excesses.
From a logical view, the US has every reason to stop the conflict and declare an end to the war. As others pointed out the war math doesn’t add up because modern 21st Century drone warfare can produce effective drones at 5 figures a unit and US interceptor technology produces missiles at 7 figures a unit. A child can already decide who will run out first. Readers will also know there are hypersonic missiles, and a combination of technologies that have already defeated the so called Iron Dome.
Iran on the other hand has operated with mostly a “tit-for-tat” approach, responding in kind to aggression and then de-escalating. And this pattern is simple enough for the world public to make out and appreciate. With the US potentially disrupting the economy and daily life of Iran and Iranians in general, I think the logic follows that Iran will simply do the very same thing to the US.
Trump has shifted a great deal of US wealth into the petro-states as a deposit box of sorts, and in turn, the petro-states have turned a lot of that money back into the US by way of investment. Iran is clearly aware of this - as would be casual readers - and they’re just disrupting that loop with devastating awareness.
I suspect that the US and others may have operated on the assumption that Iran was weak or on the verge of collapse. But, I also believe that the truth is coming out that Iran is actually much more prepared and robust than the US wishes to admit.
At this rate, the petro-states may end up suffering massive losses, creating knock-on impacts on the US economy. Everyone should be moving with urgency. This is actually a consequential war not in the bogus religious sense with references to “Armageddon”, but rather a power shifting moment from the age of superpowers to multipolarity. Only trouble is…no one advertised how destructive and violent that age shift would be.
What’s the show called?
I thought Panasonic makes those infrared ovens still. They’re still around!
Productivity gains are not across the board, and is a subject of scrutiny and debate.
But what AI really has done is basically redistributed American wealth to a smaller group of people, and therefore a smaller pool for the US politicians to focus on satisfying. If there is an AI bubble pop, what market watchers suspect is there’s actually no other American sector to mitigate what is otherwise a recession.
A cynic in me suggests that this may be a move to push people off the system and disenfranchise them entirely, or the new rationale to create a second class of people who are forced to live with increased digital vulnerability while a new class of numbers can be generated with different privileges.
OpenAI is the same as any other publicly traded corporation: it serves society, but this service primarily focuses on the shareholders. We’re looking at a vehicle designed to take money, and give it to shareholders. (private in this case or otherwise)
Focus on growth of data centres at public expense, AI slop, the circular nature of some of the investments going into AI, and the productivity (or lack of), are part of it. We are not looking at any exceptionalism. AI isn’t unique in its capability for catastrophic harm. What we eat and drink can easily be on that list.
AI and these American companies, just want the money train to continue unabated, and any regulation to go away.
Thanks for spelling out how to get started for me. I’ll give this a try later!
Thanks everyone for the responses!
Question: I do remember the days of those RSS buttons everywhere. But I never managed to see the value in it.
Can anyone share their experience with following feeds, and how they consume this content? Is there some kind of spam/tracker free functionality that people enjoy? Are there apps out there that organize this in a way that changes the game?
I’d like to give it another shot, sorry for all the questions.
For those thinking about the switch, and happen to game, I understand that plenty of users are going to CachyOS or Bazzite as well.
Actively look to “give glory” or kudos to people around you.
On a practical level, be it an opposing force opponent, or even someone on your own squad - like a family member - looking to give glory encourages me to engage with my environment on a real level when I’m drifting off or getting lost. I’m trying to connect with the intentions of others while still trying to achieve my own. These don’t have to be lose-lose situations, and they shouldn’t be either.
If I can compliment someone on a tactic or a response committed under stress, I’m trying to say I see the other person. I’m also saying honestly that the action was valid, and others can understand my position without guessing. In a world where some feel they have to live by deception or seek glory for themselves exclusively, simply validating someone else gives strength and encourages others to tough out their positions in the face of toxicity.
You’re also forcing a change of perspective, and refraining from dwelling on the faults of others or yourself.
Even if the kudos goes to the opposition, I’d rather compliment someone I believe I can work with, and build mutual respect.
And we have rocks.