These things are called “Dübel,” which is also a casual term for joint in German, and can also be used as a verb: “einen dübeln” means to smoke a joint — all things that help humanity progress.

Yes, forum was and is a good term because it also conveys the roots of democracy in ancient times (a physical place where people met to discuss things of common interest). That was precisely the point a few decades ago: to distinguish between interactive communication media and mass media, which were characterized by one-way communication from a central sender to many recipients.

Unfortunately, however, forum is now a term that sounds outdated because it is associated with the internet before Facebook (2004) – and I would classify Facebook today as a mass medium rather than a social medium, even though, unlike classical publishing media (newspapers and so on), it does not produce any content itself.

I mean everything that falls under the term social media as of now, which includes Lemmy as well as reddit.

And this is precisely the problem I see: The internet is a medium that implies mutual exchange - it is a social medium - this was already the case before the advent of so-called social media in the mid 2000s, a term that was coined to distinguish between classical mass media and “user generated content”, meaning posts and comments by people who are not directly involved with the “Host” of the content.

Now, however, we have the problem that the term, at least in the broad sense, describes services that, in my opinion, do not stand for free exchange between equals, but instead function more like traditional mass media, such as television stations or magazines and newspapers - they are centrally controlled and do not allow open discourse just as publishing media of old did.

The Fediverse is structured differently -more like the old internet, but for applications that people would call social media today. I don’t think the difference can be made clear by insisting that Fediverse apps are in fact much more in line with social media than what the term really describes for most people (meta, tiktok, LinkedIn and the like).

So I think the term is burned and we need a new one that is understandable to the general public and clearly distinguishes the Fediverse from todays’s so-called social media.

The thing is, however, that it will be difficult to find a term that describes social media without using this very term, which is likely to cause confusion with services that today are actually more akin to traditional mass media, which did have letters to the editor but were not in the least “social” in a sense of exchange between equals.

This is not a war being waged there, but systematic mass murder committed by a well-equipped army.

It is, of course, commendable that this soldier has the courage to speak to the press, but the fact that this is still necessary speaks volumes about how morally bankrupt the governments of the Western world are: they continue to conjure up tales of terrorism against Israel, of a defensive war against terrorists, and in doing so condemn an entire ethnic group to the most brutal extermination.

What they are saying is exactly what the monsters in Israel are saying: All Palestinians are terrorists, all deserve to die, regardless of whether they are unarmed, starving, and just want to live—regardless of whether they are children or pregnant women.

This is genocide, not war, but the West is making common cause with the monsters and even supplying weapons for crimes against humanity.

I am ashamed that I have to watch my government do this, and I am also ashamed of my fellow citizens who are against it but are frozen in their apathy and do not have the guts to take even the slightest risk and stand up decisively against this unspeakable inhumanity that our politicians actively support out of greed for money and power.

I’m sorry, Dave…

That’s a good approach.

I myself don’t see progress as a technical thing, but rather technology as something that could help us overcome our animalistic traits in order to enable us to live together in a good, forward-looking way. I mean, of all the mammals in the world, we are the best at building tools, but I wonder if we are making the most of this or if, despite all our tools, we are ultimately incapable of overcoming our instincts.

I don’t know the answer any more than anyone else. However, your answer, which I share, suggests that despite all our technological achievements, we are not evolving significantly, but remain trapped in our animal nature.

Since technology would presumably make it possible for people to no longer have to fight over water sources, I ask.

It’s a shame that these cool things are probably too expensive. The Transrapid, a hover train from Germany, unfortunately also failed to catch on, but at least one commercial line was built in China connecting Shanghai Pudong International Airport with Longyang Road Station in the city, which is still in operation today.

Do I have to provide this information to Palantir myself, or will the authorities do that for me?

Google Workspace (GMail, Meet, Calendar Drive, Docs, Sheets, …) is a popular alternative to MS365 among companies.

The Republicans control both houses of Congress. But the usual rules don’t seem to apply anymore. Isn’t Trump currently starting a war without the approval of Congress?

German here: The overwhelming majority of politicians in my home country are also doing everything they can not only to silence voices denouncing the genocide of the Palestinians, but also to actively support these crimes against humanity, among other things by supplying weapons - all this while invoking “our historical responsibility.” This seems almost worse to me, especially because I am convinced that the majority of the population firmly rejects this and wants the opposite course - namely, to hold these monsters in Israel accountable for their crimes.

I am truly ashamed to be German, and I think many of my compatriots feel the same way when they read the daily horror stories from Gaza and have to admit that we are actually promoting this barbarism on the part of Israel. It’s enough to make you cry.

Yes, it still amounts to billions in additional tax revenue, which is of course paid for by US citizens rather than the manufacturing countries – but this sum is probably already reserved for the planned tax cuts for the super-rich.

The plan is presumably to finance Trump’s private army through additional cuts in healthcare, environmental protection, education, and all other areas that are counterproductive to fascism.

I’m not a US citizen, but I think this country is screwed.

It’s clear that ICE is morally bankrupt, but I thought that its restructuring into a secret police force would be financed by these absurd import tariffs, which are so broad in scope that they are basically tantamount to a massive VAT increase.

Given what is currently happening in the US, I cannot help but ask myself: Does the police still respond when emergency calls come in reporting that several armed and masked men are dragging people into a van and kidnapping them?

That’s a genuine question, and I don’t know the answer. But hey, I don’t know the answer to the question of how all this can be possible in a constitutional state either.

I’m not concerned with definitions, but rather with people’s opinions. This seems to me especially relevant given that there are many US users here. I’m interested in how they perceive what is happening in the US, what their legal system allows, and whether they consider it just in any way.

I don’t know what you mean by “architecture of westoid regimes” and I don’t think you know either.

It is all besides the point. My question was what you think the purpose of a legal system should be. And all you come up with is that stuff.

I really don’t understand how you can hold that opinion. Your president is clearly a criminal, and he is exploiting your legal system to enrich himself and his partners.

That’s perfectly obvious.

It’s equally obvious that your legal system not only allows this, but also enables this level of massive organized crime in the first place.

Here’s an example: Clarence Thomas, a Supreme Court justice, has been blatantly corrupt for decades (and he’s not the only one in that small circle). The Supreme Court has ruled - in clear violation of the US Constitution - that the law does not apply to the president. So Trump is shamelessly enriching himself.

How can anyone live in such a system and even approve of it?

I just don’t understand what you’re getting at.

China, I assume. You seem to be a staunch communist, although you obviously don’t care what that means. So probably Russia. If I’m wrong: China also has little to do with communism. It’s just that the world’s production is located there, so they have enough money to make people believe that this is a system worth living in.