When You See a Problem…
After discovering the problems with the domain of the internet system and some unpleasant consequences due to that as I’ve discussed elsewhere, I made it a prime focus in 2024 to try to find solutions to certain things that would fall under my purview of being able to offer useful input.
The first project I was excited about before 2024 but hoped would come to completion during that period was Gabpay. I’m not what you would call a “Christian Nationalist” but I do think competition that has a Biblical foundation against things like Paypal is going to be a positive contribution to the payment processor space. I especially believe that payment gateways need to be taken out of the custody of the likes of Stripe and Paypal since both of them have been caught de-platforming people at various moments for political reasons. While I don’t have an issue for people being removed from certain services due to serious violations of law, political beliefs ought not be one of the reasons for removal.
The last thing I did was apply for a card Gabpay said was coming, and that was some time ago. I think the idea was to compete with Paypal’s card system, which seemed like a good idea to me. Checking on it for purpose of writing this article, I’m still uncertain what the status is, and that’s about all I need to know about that solution. A general truth is going to be repeated here–if Gabpay had delivered on this promise within a reasonable time frame, they could have been a huge player in the tech scene. As it is, it’s more like a joke along the lines of Half-Life 3.
Another Project
Another project I got excited about was the Encyclosphere project as an alternative to Wikipedia. I became involved with writing some proof for it along with editing articles and understanding how the underlying code moved between confederated Wikis. When I wanted to make an offline copy of one of the wikis, however, Larry Sanger took it upon himself to accuse me of being a Chinese spy who was trying to steal the project. Apparently my idea hit at the same time some other nefarious actor out there started mucking about with the site. Of course, if this hasn’t been solved, then it seems to me that Sanger is not really solving the original problems that the first Wikipedia posed in that foreign influences got ahold of it. Since defending myself against accusations of not being a Chinese spy is a tiresome occupation, I decided to take my leave of the project. I’m not a lot of other things I don’t make a habit of defending myself against either. I don’t exactly blame Larry Sanger for this, but it did show me that putting effort into this specific project is unlikely to yield different results as the well is easily poisoned. With a little more trust, however, and less paranoia, and more unified effort applied to networking problems, I think Encyclosphere could have been a HUGE player on the tech scene as a better source of information that Wikipedia.
Finally Freenet
My final big 2024 hope was pinned on what was called Locutus but is now called Freenet. Ian Clark, who made the original Freenet, was behind this one and had a release date for early spring. Since I was a big fan of the old Freenet, I figured Ian had a good grasp on the timetable involved to get a project like this done and so assumed he had estimated correctly and waited for the work to complete full-well knowing that if he got it done on the timetable he anticipated, the project would be huge. Unfortunately, due to a crypto library they had counted on working with the new system needing to be re-written, the project was not done in Spring. It still wasn’t done in Fall, and I think also isn’t done now. The straw that broke that camel’s back, however, was when I was chatting with Ian and mentioned that I thought the project needed to be out sooner rather than later because people were literally dying over freedom of speech issues. He made light of that fact, although I think he is based out of Texas in part. I wonder if the present events connected there with all the exploisions have made him re-think that position? Regardless, it’s too late for the new Freenet to make the kind of impact it could have if Ian had estimated the time it would take correctly to make the new model.
My Evaluation
I think in many instances, the places above are motivated by a good but also receive grants to do the work they are doing. I think the process of receving grants makes those who are doing these projects vested in receiving more grant money and want to control the project in certain ways. This gives a false sense of security, and a lack of urgency. After all, if you have your own needs met, however long it takes is however long it takes. On the other hand, if you are being attacked by enemies of free speech, you require relief immediately–not when somebody gets around to it. In that regard, I think all the above other than Gab has a lack of first-hand experience. Gab probably got hamstrung at the banking level, but didn’t bother to communicate that and so lost its momentum. This and all the statements about creating a “parallel economy” and literally not seeming to achieve that in the least in any useful way make it a bunch of hot air. False hope is worse than no hope. Indeed, no technology is going to save humankind. That’s why there was a guy crucified, after all. On the other hand, the people who have that guy in common are supposed to be on a similar page–not dragging their feet and getting grant money and outsourcing tomorrow’s casualties for today’s funding. (Robbing Peter to pay Paul as they say) As a whole, I’d say in the technology fields, these groups of people have failed to assert a beachead and secure a landing zone for others fighting for freedom. Most of the reasons why it hasn’t happened are petty. Nobody is going to contribute to a project if you are constantly accusing them of nefarious ends. Ghosting your users about the status of your project is a good way to make them not care–especially if it takes forever. Making freedom of speech software but not feeling a kind of empathy of the actual plight of people who are dying because of the inability to speak and taking your time because you made an error in the time estimate is also not great. These are all human errors, but they are project-killers. Above all, missing the “Operational window” of “highest effectiveness and impact” is absolutely fatal. While there is still hope for these projects, the impact is now likely to be faint.
Rather, some other paradigm of technological freedom will have to take their places. Perhaps Qortal can fill that gap?
Note: Tor solves many problems all ready, and so does I2P. Of course, trusting the other users is another problem there.