Mastodawn

David Slifka Feb 6, 2023

The fediverse has come this far despite being very capital-constrained.

What if that constraint were lifted?

If you have a project or idea (for- or non-profit) that helps build or grow the fediverse and would benefit from funding, I hope you'll apply here. Thank you!
https://bit.ly/fediverse-funding

Fediverse Funding Opportunities

Fediverse funding opportunities If you have a project or idea to grow the fediverse or Mastodon, and if funding would help you do it faster/bigger/better, I hope you’ll apply for funding here: https://form.typeform.com/to/eMY7s8S8 Increasingly, there’s interest in supporting the fediverse from b...

Google Docs

@davidslifka to everyone not liking this post:

Look, I'm trying to escape capitalism just as much as anyone else, but the reality is that in today's godforsaken gladiator economy, funding can enable projects that wouldn't otherwise be able to do their thing. I'd love it if everyone could figure out how to get by outside of the money system, but today a lot of projects fail because the people doing it need to keep a roof over their head. To deny this is a *very* privileged viewpoint.

1/

James M.Feb 7, 2023

@davidslifka
I think such energy is better put towards figuring out *how* to accept funding without letting it negatively influence the project. There are ways to do this, and there do exist the occasional funders who are doing it for the right reasons, and IMO we should be open to that. Yes, there are valid reasons to be extra cautious when accepting funding, but that doesn't mean everyone who is trying to donate is a threat.

2/

James M.Feb 7, 2023

Finally, it HASN'T been all volunteers so far-- donations help sustain both Mastodon development and the operating costs of most instances. Please help support your own instance if you can afford to.

3/3

David Slifka Feb 7, 2023

@jamesmarshall Thank you, that's all well said!

Elizabeth Tai | 戴秀铃 🇲🇾Feb 7, 2023

@jamesmarshall @davidslifka Yup agree.

toolbear#🪧Feb 7, 2023

@liztai @jamesmarshall @davidslifka
I might agree in other cases but not this specific case.

That Google doc has almost no information about anything relevant for assessing whether this is a safe let alone good opportunity. It looks a lot like a way to steal labor in the form of crowdsourced ideas to use in a subsequent pitch document tbh

Jan Feb 7, 2023

@toolbear @liztai @jamesmarshall @davidslifka Agree, who are the VCs, GPs, what are the terms?

toolbear#🪧Feb 7, 2023

@jamesmarshall
> To deny this is a *very* privileged viewpoint.

I've had a night's sleep to stew on this.

This is close to weaponizing intersectionality to defend the status quo of capitalism with choosing a Venture Capitalist as your champion.

I get that that probably wasn't your intent but that's exactly how it came across.

VC guy's entire thread is suss.

Also, anti-capitalists deserve to have a space here without being attacked for speaking up. Deprivatizing the Internet is a thing.

James M.Feb 7, 2023

@toolbear um, I wasn't "attacking" anybody, I was disagreeing with them, and respectfully at that. Others were attacking the OP much more. I think HE deserves to have a space here without being attacked. Some didn't even consider the possibility that he was trying to help.

I don't see how I came "close to weaponizing intersectionality". And I didn't choose anybody as my "champion", I just want this to be a welcoming space.

It is absolutely privileged to think people can live without income.

toolbear#🪧Feb 7, 2023

@jamesmarshall
"Very privileged" felt like an attack to me. Intent versus impact. Peace.

James M.Feb 7, 2023

@toolbear also, to acknowledge the current need for most people to have income is not "defending the status quo of capitalism". I thought I made that clear in my first reply to the OP.

rakoo Feb 7, 2023

@jamesmarshall @davidslifka I don't think anyone denies the need for money in a capitalist society, this is different.

When you get funding, it's not a donation; it's a loan, with full expectation of a positive ROI. Which means someone who accepted the funding must not only get money for themselves, but *also* for someone else. And the only way that works at scale, currently, is surveillance capitalism.

I'm all for giving money to my instance hoster, or to the app developer if it's very good (but only if it's Libre -- a discussion for another time). But where does this money go ? To the devs ? Or to the VC ?

That's why I'm asking about the kinds of business models that could be viable here. I don't know if it's possible to have a business model that preserves privacy, community *and* pays the funders, but I don't know much so 🤷

James M.Feb 7, 2023

@rakoo @davidslifka thanks for your (respectful) thoughts and clarification.

Not all funding has an expectation of ROI. For-profit investments do; non-profit donations generally do not. Some are "donor-advised" contributions, which means the donor states which activities the donation is used for. Now, there are certainly shady nonprofits that are vehicles for corporate influence, but most are not.

For the record, I run a nonprofit that writes open source software. I'm a devoted fan of FOSS.

rakoo Feb 7, 2023

@jamesmarshall @davidslifka I admit I have little experience with non profits but the idea of funding sounds... sketchy ? I don't know

James M.Feb 7, 2023

@rakoo @davidslifka regarding "where does the money go", there are ways to ensure it's used correctly. The instance I use (sfba.social) is 100% transparent with their finances. It runs by donations and volunteer admins and moderators. The donations go to server and traffic costs. If it were to become a full-time job, I wouldn't mind paying the admin.

I would like to see this kind of openness be a common model for fediverse instances.