#eff

that's not great. but it's not the whole story.

a few things got worse right before the vote too. the language that explicitly protected encryption, saying the bill couldn't be used to force platforms to weaken it, got quietly stripped out on Friday. that safeguard just doesn't exist anymore.

but this isn't over. it heads to the senate next, and the senate is genuinely not on board. blumenthal and cantwell, two of the senators who wrote the original KOSA, are saying they don't want this version near a markup. blackburn, a republican and the other original author, called the missing duty of care provision a red line.

worth being clear here, blackburn isn't on our side. she wants the policy stronger, not gone. but that's still a crack we can use. her opposition means the house version has zero guaranteed path through the senate as written, and a stalled bill is a bill that isn't law yet. use her objection, don't trust her motive.

senate commerce hasn't even scheduled a markup yet. that's the next pressure point. this thing has died or gotten majorly rewritten at this stage before.

contact your senators: find yours here. tell them you don't want the house version anywhere near a vote.

and remember, if you have to, contact your senators scared. anything helps.

Hey, German-speakers! Through a very weird set of circumstances, I ended up owning the rights to the German audiobook of my bestselling 2022 cryptocurrency heist technothriller Red Team Blues and now I'm selling DRM-free audio and ebooks, along with the paperback (all in German and English) on a Kickstarter that runs until August 11.

I need to tell you something unsatisfying: your personal consumption choices will not make a meaningful difference to the amount of enshittification you experience in your life.

Oh sure, you can tinker in the margins, and you should! Get a repairable laptop, like the Framework, which is the greatest computer I've ever owned, and run Linux on it (I use Ubuntu, which is easy to install). You'll spend two weeks looking around the UI for the thing you need to click on and then you'll stop noticing it altogether, forever:

https://pluralistic.net/2022/11/13/graceful-failure/#frame

Access the internet via RSS, and avoid all the algorithmic twiddling and surveillance that subjects you and yours to the depredations of the worst people on earth and their feral algorithms:

https://www.citationneeded.news/curate-with-rss/

Give preference to high-security, private, open messaging tools like Signal. Open an account on a federated social media service, like Mastodon, and make it a first-class home for your online social life:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/12/14/fire-exits/#graceful-failure-modes

Do all this! Do more! You'll make your life somewhat better, and in some cases, much better. But you're not going to fight enshittification this way. Enshittification is not the result of people making bad choices: it's the result of bad policies that produce bad systems.

Enshittification makes for a neat descriptive account, talking about how platforms go bad:

Here is how platforms die: first, they are good to their users; then they abuse their users to make things better for their business customers; finally, they abuse those business customers to claw back all the value for themselves.

https://pluralistic.net/2023/01/21/potemkin-ai/#hey-guys

But the most important part of enshittification is its causal hypothesis: the answer it proposes to why this degradation is happening everywhere, right now:

https://pluralistic.net/2025/02/26/ursula-franklin/#franklinite

Here's why you're getting enshittified: we deliberately decided to stop enforcing competition laws. As a result, companies formed monopolies and cartels. This means that they don't have to worry about losing your business or labor to a competitor, because they don't compete. It also means that they can handily capture their regulators, because they can easily agree on a set of policy priorities and use the billions they've amassed by not competing to capture their regulators. They can hold a whip hand over their formerly powerful tech workers, mass-firing them and terrorizing them out of any Tron-inspired conceits about "fighting for the user." Finally, they can use IP law to shut down anyone who makes technology that disenshittifies their offerings.

You can take care to avoid enshittification, you can even make a fetish out of it, but without addressing these systemic failings, your individual actions will only get you so far. Sure, use privacy-enhancing tools like Signal to communicate with other people, but if the only way to get your kid to their little league game is to join the carpool group on Facebook, you're going to hemorrhage data about everything you do to Meta.

Likewise, you can use privacy-preserving adblockers in your browser, but the instant you've got to do business with a monopoly that requires you to use their app, you will be totally helpless before them, because anti-circumvention law felonizes modifying an app so it preserves your privacy. An app is just a webpage skinned with the right kind of IP law to make it a jailable offense to install an ad-blocker:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/05/07/treacherous-computing/#rewilding-the-internet

When all your friends are going to a festival, are you really going to opt out because the event requires you to use the Ticketmaster app (because Ticketmaster has a monopoly over event ticketing)? If so, you're not gonna have a lot of friends, which is a pretty shitty way to live.

If you turn your personal campaign to live an enshittification-free life into a set of rigid practices that isolate you from your community, you will be miserable – and you will undermine your ability to address the systemic roots of enshittification.

February 1, 2026 - "We want the whole embassy of Israel closed down.” Julius Malema, president of South Africa’s Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF), delivered a strong pro-Palestine message during a party plenum.

The speech comes as the South African government expelled Israeli diplomat Seidman following tensions on social media. South Africa accused Seidman of using official social media platforms to attack South African President and inviting Israeli officials to the country without permission.

NetChoice is offering a much clearer, more practical, and better option for internet safety here! They are an organization suing age verification bills! (their Wikipedia page) (A mention of the on the age verification Wikipedia) It’s important we show that we do want internet safety and show what the real solutions are as well as why age verification and censorship is not and never will be the solution. Remember the ACLU and EFF and FFTF all oppose these bad internet bills too!

(Twitter post link)

The link in the image in the post from NetChoice

https://netchoice.org/netchoices-digital-safety-shield-for-america/

TELL THEM TO SAY NO TO HR 9495

hr9495 is a bill that would destroy our only way to fight against trump and his administration. Please call your house reps. If your house rep is democrat please tell them what I said above. If theyre republican tell them that this would also affect non profits like the Salvation Army! They’re voting on hr9495 this Monday so please call within today and tomorrow. If you can’t call due to not being American or just fear please tell your American friends to call their reps.

CALL THESE REPS SPECIFICALLY CUZ THEY SAID YES TO THE BIL CONVINCE THEM TO SAY NO

Surveillance isn’t “out there” anymore—it’s on our streets. Help EFF fight surveillance today: https://takebackctrl.org

for this upcoming bandcamp friday (march 1st 2024), please consider purchasing a couple of the following albums / mixes / archives to support palestine. bandcamp friday is a dedicated day where bandcamp gives artists 100% of the profits from sales. it typically falls on the first friday of every month. many of the projects listed below have sales going to palestinian causes and charities; they feature some fantastic artists too, so give them a listen!

resist colonial power by any means necessary — ptp — currently on preorder, with most tracks available for listening. "this compilation exists as a collaborative declaration against genocide and global occupation, a gesture towards resistance, a concerted action in support of the people who are moving on a path to their own collective liberations in the face of the western imperialist project." 100% of the sales will go towards Urgent Support for Medical Professionals in Gaza & Cultural Capital Haiti.

hurryia for gaza i — various artists — phrex — "This is a Fundraiser for occupied Palestine. No words can describe what is going on right now. A genocide is unfolding - bombs are dropping and killing civilians. All I can contribute is music. It feels dull sharing music in the face of what is happening but it's what I am able to do now." All money raised will go to Palestinian Medical Relief Society or Médecins Sans Frontières.

hurryia for gaza ii — various artists — phrex — also has a merch fundraiser attached. "A Fundraiser for occupied Palestine. It is the 118th day of the genocide and counting. The situation keeps escalating. The people in both Gaza and the West Bank are suffering endlessly. Meanwhile the west has been ignoring the atrocities committed by the oppressor. This fundraiser shall raise awareness and empower all fellow SWANA people and our allies. We will not be silenced. Keep on speaking about the Palestinian cause and make sure to include all oppressed people! The struggles are interconnected." the money raised (minus expenses & Bandcamp fee) will go to The Ghassan Abu Sittah Children's Fund, UNRWA, & Sanad Palestine.

a homeland denied: a compilation for the palestinian liberation — hardcore 4 gaza initiative — you can also donate $10 or more to MECA for peace and email them the receipt; they will give you the bandcamp code for downloads. "121 bands from all over the world (big, small and even brand new ones) came together for this project offering unique contributions (new exclusive songs, live recordings, remixes, some released tracks, etc.), to show a unified message of solidarity to the people of Gaza who are facing a genocide of unprecedented proportions. The hardcore scene must show that our values are not empty words but deep convictions: we walk the talk." All profits will be donated to MECA for Peace to send humanitarian aid to Palestinian youth in Gaza.

women of noise for palestine — women of noise — "We're an international blog (@womenofnoise) created to promote and showcase women and femme alligned people in experimental and alternative music." All proceeds for this charity compilation will be donated to the Palestinian Children's Relief Fund.

e-sims for gaza — middle man records — "Please visit the site and see how you can help keep the people of Gaza in communication with each other and the outside world. Free Palestine" ALL FUNDS WILL GO TO PURCHASE e-SIMS FOR PEOPLE IN NEED VIA gazaesims.com

eq50 presents 4gaza — eq50 — "Like so many, we have been horrified and deeply affected by the current and ongoing genocide, crimes against humanity, devastation, and displacement of people in Gaza and beyond. Spurred by the dire situation and acute need to help in as many ways as possible, we called on our support network of talented producers, asking them to contribute a piece of music to this fundraising project - and they definitely came through with the goods." All profits will be split between Anera and DecolonizePalestine.

artists without borders — silicone records — "Our music serves as a symbol of our support for a world marked by freedom and hope, starting with improved conditions for the Palestinian people. We strongly oppose hatred towards any religion and respect everyone's right to practice their faith in peace. We believe that when hope is taken away, people lose everything, and we are determined to remain united as a community." Every contribution will be dedicated to supporting the invaluable work of Doctors Without Borders / Médecins Sans Frontières, with a specific intention to aid those who have been injured in Gaza.

people of eternity: bds mixtape vol. 1 — amplify palestine bds mixtape — tax deductible using the id number in the description. "To the people of eternity. The national anthem of Palestine calls out repeatedly to 'my people, the people of eternity.' The songs on this album are presented here in service of their liberation. In listening, you will deepen your knowledge of the fact that music is a powerful site for a freedom that’s both specific to an occupied place and voluminous in reach. You find yourself turning, turning around inside many deep strata at once. Dancing maybe, aligning your breath with a hundred different intertwined rhythms." Proceeds from BDS Mixtape’s sales and streaming support cultural initiatives in Palestine through Adalah-NY’s Amplify Palestine campaign.

rise up: bds mixtape vol. 2 — amplify palestine bds mixtape — "By raising our voices and instruments to protest occupation, dehumanization, genocide, and vengeance, we broadcast a message to Palestinians and the many Israelis who have joined in the struggle for a future with justice and equality: We are with you. We will not be complicit in allowing art to be used in service of an apartheid state. Our creativity is in the service of liberation. We are cultivating connection. We are inviting reflection. We are intrepidly insisting on joy. We have power." Mixtape sales are tax-deductible and support Palestinian cultural initiatives.  

resist to exist — avon terror corps x exist festival — avon terror corps — "In collaboration with Exist Festival and the memory of our dear friend Odai. 'Resist to Exist' is a collaborative album released in conjunction between Exist Records and Avon Terror Corps raising awareness to the Palestinian medical services’ efforts to safeguard their population in the face of Israeli airstrikes against their territories. This necessary initiative was led by Exist Founder, Odai Masri who tragically passed away on 30 June 2023. Odai Masri was the founder of the first Palestinian Electronic music record label Harara Records and Exist Festival." From October 2023 100% of all profits will go to Medical Aid for Palestinians Gaza emergency appeal.

the final passage — al gharib — "Together with Dalia Association we stand firmly for Gaza by ensuring the Gaza Fund is dedicated towards strengthening the resilience of our people and improving their living and health conditions during such devastating times." ALL funds raised to be distributed to Dalia Association.

here also are some palestinian artists, labels, and archives that you can support directly:

palestinian bedouin tape archive — majazz archive — "The Majazz Project is a research project borne out of the archive, focused around sampling, remixing and reissuing vintage Palestinian cassettes. It is a collaboration between Arab and non-Arab DJs, producers and artists interested in shedding new light on the richness and diversity of Palestinian musical heritage."

the intifada 1987 — majazz archive — "Just one week after the outbreak of the First Intifada in 1987, Riad brought his sisters Hanan, Alia and Nariman together in their living room and began recording The Intifada album on equipment he had made himself. One of these was co-written with their friend, the acclaimed Palestinian writer Mahmoud Darwish."

al fajer (the dawn) — majazz archive — "Al Fajer Group became known for their unique frequencies and the transparency of their sound. The band is rooted in acoustic oud, guitar and percussion and they never used any electronic equipment during their sets. When they were first established they would perform Palestinian patriotic songs, related to the Palestinian liberation struggle. They released their launch album, recorded on reel tapes, during the First Intifada in 1988, after which they began composing and writing their own original music."

tuqoos — julmud — bilna'es — "The sounds have an almost granular detailed texture while maintaining a gripping rhythmic flow via dense bass lines and a bitter sweetness in the melodies, blurring the lines between hanging on a street corner, at a protest or in a club. Produced in Ramallah - Palestine, Tuqoos pushes up against otherwise inaccessible space, resisting the conditions of a body in capture through sounds that morph, slip through and create breaks in times and spaces that remain occupied."

too low, too far — dak'n — bilna'es — "A new release by Dakn, too low/too far, made up of 9 tracks evoking different parts of a body in post trauma. Harmonic textures resonating alongside dissonant layers are disrupted by pulsing fragments of distant rhythms that, at times, feel like they are sounds emanating from within one’s body or perhaps the land."

kamil manqus — muqata'a — no description provided. from boiler room palestine: "Building his career with Ramallah Underground, a seminal hip hop group that influenced a whole new generation of Palestinian artists, Muqata'a is the godfather of hip hop in Ramallah."

here's a further list of recommendations and playlist of pro-palestine and antizionist songs to play at protests

also check out learning palestine, "a two-part, 12-hour radio program of lectures, interviews, book presentations, talks, storytelling, music, songs, poetry, and chants, among others, illustrating the struggle for the liberation of Palestine. This was conceived by the Learning Palestine group and originally broadcast on the Bethlehem-based station, Radio Alhara."