Message from @velvitonator
Discord ID: 506192331494522892
Anyone can make a social network
See: Gab, Minds, more small ones
What we need to figure out is a way around payment processors
Just because it doesn't displace all at once doesn't mean it's not competing with it
gab may not last the night.
We can get around thinks like ISPs, but that requires a community effort.
Tor/VPN?
Minds is a step. Cryptos might be a way to get around the problem. But they are still too unstable
still requires hosting infrastructure and payment processors
Really why are payment processors even needed? Because we are too lazy to write monthly checks.
gab is being booted from its second host within hours
I thought Minds had some internal crypto?
Or ship hard cash
I think minds does
No, payment processors mitigate risk and volume
Or maybe that is steemit
and currently its only sources of income are shopify and startengine, both of which are likely to be lost as they rely on the same payment processors through a middleman
TBH I'm not gonna shed any tears over gab
mind's internal crypto is a failure
But there's nothing that really prevents it from operating
network effects
the value of a cryptocurrency is directly dependent on the number of people using it, and the number of people using minds is directly dependent on having a means of making money using it.
Oh I agree, it's a problem
tor barely functions as is
To a degree, but there are also other factors
putting something like a major social media platform on it would cripple it
What we're seeing is the intensification of those other factors
Gab is not a major social media platform
We need to find the source of there not being a good alternative payment processor. Without identifing the roadblocks, you are not solving the problem.
Tor's capacity has also improved a lot over the past few years
Partly due to Snowden, likely
Meaning any regulation would be a bandaid
And that is very bad
The only solution I can see is some kind of cryptocurrency
Or at lest, something with most of the same properties
There's still likely a cash-out endpoint (for the near to medium future)
But at that point you're worried about e.g. banks stopping transfers because of your opinions
I can't say there's 0% chance of that, but they seem to be used to being hated
So probably are less susceptible to the sway of popular opinion
Corporations control our money (banks) and the government indirectly controls the banks. Without something decentralized, one of the two will always shut us down