Dear Scammers, Spammers, Bots, and Trolls,Fuck you.

@alice I just saw, muted and reported my first ever spammer and spam post this morning.

Dear Scammers, Spammers, Bots, and Trolls,
Fuck you. Get off Fedi. No one wants you here.

Dear Mutual Aid Requesters,
Don't act like scammers, spammers, or bots—otherwise you get treated like them. Instead, build community and friends here. Contribute positively. Then folx will want to help you.

Dear Adult Content Posters,
Don't post other folx' nudes without consent. It makes you look like spammers and bots; and it's considered Image-Based Sexual Abuse, as well as copyright infringement—both of which are illegal. Instead, boost local sexworkers / content creators and post your own stuff. Build something positive.

Dear Reply Guys, Sea Lions, and Concern Trolls,
Just stop. Also, you used the wrong *their* again.

Dear Everyone,
Be kind. Support marginalized communities. Write good alt-text. Report predatory accounts. And keep being lovely

Let's keep Fedi from becoming Twitter, together.

We've got a good thing here.

/endRant

Dear Scammers, Spammers, Bots, and Trolls,
Fuck you. Get off Fedi. No one wants you here.

Dear Mutual Aid Requesters,
Don't act like scammers, spammers, or bots—otherwise you get treated like them. Instead, build community and friends here. Contribute positively. Then folx will want to help you.

Dear Adult Content Posters,
Don't post other folx' nudes without consent. It makes you look like spammers and bots; and it's considered Image-Based Sexual Abuse, as well as copyright infringement—both of which are illegal. Instead, boost local sexworkers / content creators and post your own stuff. Build something positive.

Dear Reply Guys, Sea Lions, and Concern Trolls,
Just stop. Also, you used the wrong *their* again.

Dear Everyone,
Be kind. Support marginalized communities. Write good alt-text. Report predatory accounts. And keep being lovely

Let's keep Fedi from becoming Twitter, together.

We've got a good thing here.

/endRant

Dear Scammers, Spammers, Bots, and Trolls,
Fuck you. Get off Fedi. No one wants you here.

Dear Mutual Aid Requesters,
Don't act like scammers, spammers, or bots—otherwise you get treated like them. Instead, build community and friends here. Contribute positively. Then folx will want to help you.

Dear Adult Content Posters,
Don't post other folx' nudes without consent. It makes you look like spammers and bots; and it's considered Image-Based Sexual Abuse, as well as copyright infringement—both of which are illegal. Instead, boost local sexworkers / content creators and post your own stuff. Build something positive.

Dear Reply Guys, Sea Lions, and Concern Trolls,
Just stop. Also, you used the wrong *their* again.

Dear Everyone,
Be kind. Support marginalized communities. Write good alt-text. Report predatory accounts. And keep being lovely

Let's keep Fedi from becoming Twitter, together.

We've got a good thing here.

/endRant

Dear Scammers, Spammers, Bots, and Trolls,
Fuck you. Get off Fedi. No one wants you here.

Dear Mutual Aid Requesters,
Don't act like scammers, spammers, or bots—otherwise you get treated like them. Instead, build community and friends here. Contribute positively. Then folx will want to help you.

Dear Adult Content Posters,
Don't post other folx' nudes without consent. It makes you look like spammers and bots; and it's considered Image-Based Sexual Abuse, as well as copyright infringement—both of which are illegal. Instead, boost local sexworkers / content creators and post your own stuff. Build something positive.

Dear Reply Guys, Sea Lions, and Concern Trolls,
Just stop. Also, you used the wrong *their* again.

Dear Everyone,
Be kind. Support marginalized communities. Write good alt-text. Report predatory accounts. And keep being lovely

Let's keep Fedi from becoming Twitter, together.

We've got a good thing here.

/endRant

@x41h different worlds I guess. Also, I'm an adult content creator, so I see my own stuff posted here

@alice

Re: Reply Guys

People get to the Fedi from the walled-garden social media platforms of Billionaires. They're used to having their feeds curated by algorithms, which censor them, keep their feeds full of friction-less, flattering posts, calculated to make the platform "sticky", for the sake of corporate bottom-lines. When folks get to the Fedi, they're suddenly rawdogging the planet's voices & are shocked that strangers across the Earth can read their toots, worse — reply to them.

1/n

@alice

This discomfort has been attributed to a bogeyman, a construct called "reply guys". Guess what? It's quite normal for people to want to share their ideas and reaction to your ideas. That's why it's called "social" media.

So how do we assuage these concerns? Perhaps Fedi platforms, such as Mastodon, should default to a more restrictive setting on who can reply to your toots. Anyone can change the settings in their personal preferences, though newcomers find it too inconvenient.

2/n

This rant brought to you by the spam accounts and bigoted trolls I suspended his morning, and the reply guys and death threats I've received since posting it.

Edited for inclusivity.

Dear Scammers, Spammers, Bots, and Trolls,
Fuck you. Get off Fedi. No one wants you here.

Dear Mutual Aid Requesters,
Don't act like scammers, spammers, or bots—otherwise you get treated like them. Instead, build community and friends here. Contribute positively. Then folx will want to help you.

Dear Adult Content Posters,
Don't post other folx' nudes without consent. It makes you look like spammers and bots; and it's considered Image-Based Sexual Abuse, as well as copyright infringement—both of which are illegal. Instead, boost local sexworkers / content creators and post your own stuff. Build something positive.

Dear Reply Guys, Sea Lions, and Concern Trolls,
Just stop. Also, you used the wrong *their* again.

Dear Everyone,
Be kind. Support marginalized communities. Write good alt-text. Report predatory accounts. And keep being lovely

Let's keep Fedi from becoming Twitter, together.

We've got a good thing here.

/endRant

Dear Scammers, Spammers, Bots, and Trolls,
Fuck you. Get off Fedi. No one wants you here.

Dear Mutual Aid Requesters,
Don't act like scammers, spammers, or bots—otherwise you get treated like them. Instead, build community and friends here. Contribute positively. Then folx will want to help you.

Dear Adult Content Posters,
Don't post other folx' nudes without consent. It makes you look like spammers and bots; and it's considered Image-Based Sexual Abuse, as well as copyright infringement—both of which are illegal. Instead, boost local sexworkers / content creators and post your own stuff. Build something positive.

Dear Reply Guys, Sea Lions, and Concern Trolls,
Just stop. Also, you used the wrong *their* again.

Dear Everyone,
Be kind. Support marginalized communities. Write good alt-text. Report predatory accounts. And keep being lovely

Let's keep Fedi from becoming Twitter, together.

We've got a good thing here.

/endRant

Dear Scammers, Spammers, Bots, and Trolls,
Fuck you. Get off Fedi. No one wants you here.

Dear Mutual Aid Requesters,
Don't act like scammers, spammers, or bots—otherwise you get treated like them. Instead, build community and friends here. Contribute positively. Then folx will want to help you.

Dear Adult Content Posters,
Don't post other folx' nudes without consent. It makes you look like spammers and bots; and it's considered Image-Based Sexual Abuse, as well as copyright infringement—both of which are illegal. Instead, boost local sexworkers / content creators and post your own stuff. Build something positive.

Dear Reply Guys, Sea Lions, and Concern Trolls,
Just stop. Also, you used the wrong *their* again.

Dear Everyone,
Be kind. Support marginalized communities. Write good alt-text. Report predatory accounts. And keep being lovely

Let's keep Fedi from becoming Twitter, together.

We've got a good thing here.

/endRant

@alice I'm just triggered by the endrant closing without a startrant opening. Feels wrong. Unmatched brackets.
(JOKE))

But i am thinking of starting to filter some of the links to the more annoying ad filled sites.
Oh an bots that repeat the headline text twice and then again in the links preview.

@alice

We could provide newcomers with step-by-step instructions on how to change their settings so that only people they follow can reply to their posts. Though the newcomers who complain about "reply guys" are the ones least likely to follow this inconvenient procedure to get rid of unwanted replies.

Reply guys don't exist. If you're unhappy about Mohammed from Gaza replying to your toots in bad English, fix your settings.

Democracy can be uncomfortable, and requires conscious effort.

3/3

@alice

I can't be the only one who had to look up sea lions (searching for it along with "reply guy" got me past the cute mammals). Here you go:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sealioning

Yay learning! And thanks, Alice, for your championing of the community here in the Fedi!

Dear Scammers, Spammers, Bots, and Trolls,
Fuck you. Get off Fedi. No one wants you here.

Dear Mutual Aid Requesters,
Don't act like scammers, spammers, or bots—otherwise you get treated like them. Instead, build community and friends here. Contribute positively. Then folx will want to help you.

Dear Adult Content Posters,
Don't post other folx' nudes without consent. It makes you look like spammers and bots; and it's considered Image-Based Sexual Abuse, as well as copyright infringement—both of which are illegal. Instead, boost local sexworkers / content creators and post your own stuff. Build something positive.

Dear Reply Guys, Sea Lions, and Concern Trolls,
Just stop. Also, you used the wrong *their* again.

Dear Everyone,
Be kind. Support marginalized communities. Write good alt-text. Report predatory accounts. And keep being lovely

Let's keep Fedi from becoming Twitter, together.

We've got a good thing here.

/endRant

@alice Got ya. Wonder if I need to check my settings. I've literally never saw any content from yourself or others.

@alice@lgbtqia.space > copyright infringement—both of which are illegal

Depends, in some places noncommercial is either a misdemeanor-equivalent or an administrative offence, rather than the ridiculously harsh bullshit Japan has.

t. copyright abolitionist

@alice
Thank you, Alice

@lispi314 true. Laws vary wildly, and even if it's not illegal in your area, stealing someone's art and reposting it is still a fucked up thing to do.