One person’s history of Twitter, from beginning to end
I followed Mike Monteiro for years on Twitter; he's generally an ass but he's right on in this article. If language bothers you then skip it.
To summarize, I'd say his point is that Twitter has become a "pretty hate machine", and the people behind the platform aren't sticking to their principles. They're in a tough spot, but I do think Twitter has a responsibility to its users to address the problem of harassment and hate.
They also have the option to ban abusive users (which they've done in the past), and they should use that power regardless of how many clicks and views the offending user bring to Twitter. For example, they should ban Donald Trump. And since his handlers seem incapable of taking away his favorite toy, maybe they would be doing everyone a favor. Mike even goes so far as to write a sample press release that Twitter could have issued in regards to Trump's tweets regarding North Korea. But alas, Twitter did not respond that way and that idiot continues to shame the office of president in 140 characters or less.
Thoughts on Vegas, and Why Men Keep Doing This
This article has been making it's way through my social media bubble lately, and it's really good. If you click nothing else in this newsletter, click this.
Take a knee or not, Grizzlies, NBA leaders had something to say
Most of this article talks about the Grizz and a few other NBA coaches who have spoken up about the whole anthem kerfuffle (there's some other random stuff about sports or something at the bottom). I love that Fizdale is such a social warrior. I think I'll do some more research on the different programs he's passionate about and see if there's a way to get involved. What a boss.
The Full 10-Page Anti-Diversity Screed Circulating Internally at Google
This commentary (most call it a 'manifesto' at the moment, but I think that word is overused so I'm not using it) has been making the rounds in the corner of the Internet that I hang out in, but as I've been following along it occurred to me that many of you, wonderful subscribers, may not hang out in the same corner of the Internet that I do and you may not know about any of this.
All of that to say, start here. Granted, the title alone of this post (which contains the original commentary from the Google employee) is quite ironic considering a main point of the Googler was that people tend to squash all attempts at non-PC discussions of gender equality by using shame and labels, which the Gizmodo author definitely did with the title. Follow-up links below.
So, about this Googler’s manifesto. – Yonatan Zunger
Now that you've hopefully read the commentary, go here. Zunger is a former senior-ish Googler and offers more insight into a couple of things: 1) why the original author is mistaken in his assessment of skills that would make women less fit to be engineers and 2) what must be going on inside Google in terms of damage control.
The Big Lie of the Google Employee’s Anti-Diversity Manifesto
This is a well-reasoned, well-researched continuation of a point raised in the previous response link (In case you didn't read it, Zonger opted to let someone else fill us in on the original commentator's lack of understanding when it came to gender).
Here's the point of all this for me: I just had a daughter. I'm going to struggle to understand all the emotions, pressures, and perspectives she'll experience because they're different than mine, because we're different. But I'm going to try. Reading articles like this will help. Also, watch the video at the end because I said so and it made me kinda weepy.
theSkimm's Guide to The Opioid Crisis
Sorry to lead off with a downer of a link, but it is what it is. If you've ever wondered "I wonder what Calvin is like when he's angry" then we can talk about this topic. What pharmaceutical companies and doctors have done in prescribing opioids like they're Tic-Tacs is so incredibly irresponsible that... well. This is where the millennials younger than me say "I can't even." So, that.
Medium, and The Reason You Can’t Stand the News Anymore.
This article neatly summarizes the feelings I have about trying to find trustworthy news sources online. I can tell the difference in sponsored content and real content, but I make things for the Internet. Most people do not make things for the Internet, so I think creating content this way is a dark pattern (but, according to the piece, it's currently the best way to make money).
This article is full of quotes, but here's one that had me shaking my head:
a piece of news content that spreads has a better business value to the news outlet than one that is journalistically sound.
Also, if you don't know what I mean by "dark pattern" we can talk about it sometime. It's a fun subject.
Colombia’s New Cocaine Problem
This is a hopeful story of a troubled city on the rise, but the author acknowledges that as far as Medellín has come, it still can't shake the hold that a particular powder from the recent past has on its citizens. The "War on Drugs" was obviously lost years ago (though some are pretending it's still going on), so what's next? What is the role of government in this situation? Make vices less enticing with regulation? Taxes? Deregulate everything? Legalize it all? If you think you have the answer you should run for some kind of office somewhere.
This is a really good summary of blockchain, with several other resources linked. You will be sad you didn't figure out how to buy Bitcoin seven years ago. You will be a little confused and humored by the idea of a digital currency needing to be mined.