onfocus

This is the scariest take I’ve read on impeachment. We have arrived at the future Neil Postman warned us about in the 80s: no debate is possible because there's no space for serious debate. In Amusing Ourselves to Death Postman asked, "Who is prepared to take arms against a sea of amusements? To whom do we complain, and when, and in what tone of voice, when serious discourse dissolves into giggles? What is the antidote to a culture’s being drained by laughter?" Everything is entertainment.

This article is very motivating to me. I should set up a semi-private Mastodon instance for locals. We have some good tools available to make New Internet happen.

Get thee to this list. So many feels retracing these footprints. I wasn’t walking alone this whole decade—the weird web was carrying me.

"But everything that looks good doesn’t necessarily work well. In fact, those two traits are opposed more often than not: efficiency tends to look messy, and good looks tend to be inefficient."

I really enjoyed this essay about perceived efficiency and complexity. Especially with the Chesterton’s Fence kicker. Understanding an existing system before changing it is important.

This sure feels like an iconic photo that sums up the impeachment hearings in so many ways. Twitter people had fun with the Morrissey remix. And Alexandra Petri is a national treasure: Foolproof ways to be not guilty of crimes.

"Either we must submit to this pervasive surveillance machinery – where our data is easily weaponized to manipulate and influence us – or forego the benefits of the digital world. This can never be a legitimate choice."

Amnesty International the organization is wrestling with their use of Facebook in the wake of this report: We called out Facebook and Google but still need them. That's exactly the problem. They go on to say:

“We are trying to pull off the difficult balancing act of carrying out our duty to spread our human rights message while spending money with companies profiting from problematic surveillance. The reputational risk grows with every scandal. ”

I hope we see some progressive organizations start to distance themselves from Facebook. If they won’t, who will?

Take 25 minutes to watch this. He makes a fantastic, succinct argument for regulating social media to stop the reach of hate speech.

People are greedy. That's why we can't have nice things. Here’s more about why this is horrible from the EFF: Nonprofit Community Stands Together to Protect .ORG.

Rod Stewart is waaaay into model trains. Thought you should know.

If you're Mastodon-curious (and who isn't these days?) this is a great place to start. I especially enjoyed the answer to How do I establish my brand's presence on Mastodon? It would be so easy to veer into cynicism and absolutes with this question and the tone is weary but hopeful. I'm also social media weary but still hopeful about Mastodon. I really enjoy it and I think the folks who steer it are making good decisions.

I love the Paris summer olympics logo and type design. I’m a pushover for deco inspired type. Even though I know it’s the Mini Cooper move of forming fonts it always strikes me as hopeful future. And compared with some of the goofy Olympic logos of the past, this one is playful and clever.

Speaking of podcasts, PJ Vogt just dived into 30-50 feral hogs and it was pretty great. I would subscribe to his feral hogs newsletter. Also, can we talk about the reply-all cover which is a space rave cube in a gradient mountain for some reason? I blame Spotify.