I’ve earned a lifelong shadowban on the largest Mastodon instance just because I doubted a political paper (which later turned out to be as unsubstantial as I said it would be). And there’s no way to contact support as support only answers to actual members, not people from a different instance. So, ever since, whenever I reply to someone from there, they need to approve my comment before anyone else from that instance can see it. Same for when I want to follow someone new from there. It’s ridiculous.
I’ve earned a lifelong shadowban on the largest Mastodon instance just because I doubted a political paper (which later turned out to be as unsubstantial as I said it would be).
Not much to expand. Some German left-wing politicians “ordered” a report on the German right-wing party. That report was deemed “secret”, so nobody was supposed to see it. Left-wing politicians told everyone that this secret report is the ultimate proof the right-wing party is extremist and can finally be forbidden and banned. Which is the part I said I doubt until there’s a way for everyone to see the actual report and verify the findings. (I’ve compared that to “Sure, I did my homework. But then my dog ate it.”)
Someone reported me with the note “supports <name of Germany’s right-wing party>”. And that’s that. Shadowban for life. No way to contest it or explain myself as support auto-responds with “we only answer to actual members of <instance>”.
(And yes, that “report” leaked later and turned out to be just a collection of quotes from social media from party members. Nothing against the law and lots of quotes were taken far out of context. It was great stuff for the media for a week or two but that’s it. Nothing ever came out of it.)
Every story has 3 sides, as the saying goes. Dunno what was the original reason to this tug of war between the two, the OP and the admin, but if the OP’s side is the one closer to the truth, and adding your comment, it reminds me of a few instances where administration has all the devices to become power-tripping, just waiting for the right catalyst.
And about “the largest Mastodon instance”, if it is the one I’m thinking about, not the first user I see someone being banned from there for diverging opinions.
Luckily, at least, decentralized governance allows finding alternatives, or even making them. And widespread adoption of RSS allows following the contents of communities run by power-tripping folks, if the person is willing to endure that.
Though, using the Mastodon example, always worth keeping an eye for instances that are growing too much, for then you have to bend to their visions to avoid ostracization, and by extension such instances weakening decentralization, free speech, and all that.
I’ve earned a lifelong shadowban on the largest Mastodon instance just because I doubted a political paper (which later turned out to be as unsubstantial as I said it would be). And there’s no way to contact support as support only answers to actual members, not people from a different instance. So, ever since, whenever I reply to someone from there, they need to approve my comment before anyone else from that instance can see it. Same for when I want to follow someone new from there. It’s ridiculous.
Wanna expand on that?
Not much to expand. Some German left-wing politicians “ordered” a report on the German right-wing party. That report was deemed “secret”, so nobody was supposed to see it. Left-wing politicians told everyone that this secret report is the ultimate proof the right-wing party is extremist and can finally be forbidden and banned. Which is the part I said I doubt until there’s a way for everyone to see the actual report and verify the findings. (I’ve compared that to “Sure, I did my homework. But then my dog ate it.”)
Someone reported me with the note “supports <name of Germany’s right-wing party>”. And that’s that. Shadowban for life. No way to contest it or explain myself as support auto-responds with “we only answer to actual members of <instance>”.
(And yes, that “report” leaked later and turned out to be just a collection of quotes from social media from party members. Nothing against the law and lots of quotes were taken far out of context. It was great stuff for the media for a week or two but that’s it. Nothing ever came out of it.)
Every story has 3 sides, as the saying goes. Dunno what was the original reason to this tug of war between the two, the OP and the admin, but if the OP’s side is the one closer to the truth, and adding your comment, it reminds me of a few instances where administration has all the devices to become power-tripping, just waiting for the right catalyst.
And about “the largest Mastodon instance”, if it is the one I’m thinking about, not the first user I see someone being banned from there for diverging opinions.
Luckily, at least, decentralized governance allows finding alternatives, or even making them. And widespread adoption of RSS allows following the contents of communities run by power-tripping folks, if the person is willing to endure that.
Though, using the Mastodon example, always worth keeping an eye for instances that are growing too much, for then you have to bend to their visions to avoid ostracization, and by extension such instances weakening decentralization, free speech, and all that.