Someone stole some photos off my website, and now is filing DCMA take down notices against my website claiming copyright.

That's the world we live in now.

I literally cannot just share my photos with the world without becoming a target for some complete arsehole. It's not enough that people try to hack into my social media accounts every day, or flood my mobile with scam calls, or try to rip me off when cancelling a tour... I now have to waste my life responding to this shit too.

I feel like there's been a massive rise in "gonna act like an arsehole because I can" over recent years.

It's worn me to the bone. It's relentless. We've built a world where people have decided it's no big deal to literally destroy other people because their personal gain is more important.

Everything is under siege. All the time. You can't just opt out and go listen to waves on the beach. Some arsehole is gonna find you there too and find a way to make life shit for you.

I was chatting to a nice lady yesterday about her computer. She couldn't work out how to attach a different keyboard to it.

All the while I'm thinking "how long before someone hacks your Windows OS and cleans out your bank account?" She has no idea how exposed she is. One click on a dodgy email and her world could be flipped upside down.

How did we end up creating a world where people are thrown to the wolves like this? How badly have we screwed this up.

And this is just that section of the world where nobody is dropping bombs on my home, or shooting children in classrooms, or banning access to abortion and other healthcare.

We are living in the worst timeline. If there actually was a multiverse with different planet earths then ours would be the one that nobody else wants to visit.

@ewen

I feel like all of us who want better have to become more "militantly kind." That is favor helping people rather than enriching billionaires. Take whatever meager resources we have and channel it away from anyone who is not helping to those who are. This is me typing off the top of my head this morning, with no idea of the logistics involved, but it's something I personally aspire to do more of, any way I can.

@crcollins

I don't know if we can change the world with little acts of kindness, but we can definitely change our little corner of it. Every bit of kindness matters.

@ewen @crcollins

Yes. We need to be actively kind to others.

I'm listening to the audiobook "Hope For Cynics" by Jamil Zaki, it's an evidence-based book about the science of human goodness. Take a look/listen, it's certainly helped me quite a bit.

We need to create community and learn to trust again.

@lisagetspolitik @ewen @crcollins

contrary to common opinion, humans are basically good & helpful, which many β€œrandom acts of #kindness” prove every day - but the vicious, mean, brutal bullies are much louder and the crooks efficiently using all digital methods, means and meadows to their egoistical advantage …

Here is an excellent book / #mustread to bring back some hope… πŸ‘‡πŸ½