A frog who wants the objective truth about anything and everything.
Admin of SLRPNK.net
XMPP: prodigalfrog@slrpnk.net
We host an XMPP and Movim front-end that’s accessible to all Slrpnk members using their lemmy login (it queries the same database), if you’d like to try it out before recommending it to your group. It’s mentioned in our sidebar and in the monthly Meta posts (I guess that shows we might not be doing a terribly good job advertising it if you’re not familiar with it 😅)
I tried a lot, I think it has the most feature parity.
Have you tried Movim? It has most of the essential features, like group video calls, screen sharing, and a better E2EE method than matrix (IMO, anyway). It’s also much easier to set up and host since it uses XMPP.
Unfortunately we’ve allowed ourselves to use proprietary venture capital built apps, which inevitably will bring with it enshittification that makes continuing to use it against our own interests, but by then the network effect makes it like being caught in a sticky web that’s hard to escape.
We can only avoid this from happening again and again by using open-source libre software that allows for self-hosting and federation, just like Lemmy and Piefed, which makes them virtually immune from enshittification.
In this case, we need to migrate our friends and family one last time to something that will let us relax almost permanently for once.
Right now, our best option for a Discord alternative is Movim, which uses XMPP as its back end, an old, open, and proven framework. It has the essentials like group video calls and screensharing (without audio, yet), and is currently working on implementing discord-like channels with rooms.
The Dev has been working on it since 2010, and only receives $41 a month from their patreon. If you’d like to support the development of a truly federated, E2EE discord alternative, I’d highly recommend anyone reading this to consider helping out with a donation, if you can’t contribute with coding help.
Could put [AI Subject] in the title.
I played Choas Theory’s spy vs merc multiplayer before the servers were shut down (though there are fan efforts that got it working again).
I had an absolute blast with it, and as you mention it was extremely unique, I have yet to experience anything like it.
If it helps, the developers all hated Tom Clancy’s books and the conservative politics they pushed. They basically made the first splinter cell as a parody of the tropes in them. (The first game actually casts the US in a pretty bad light, showing that it’s propping up dictators who are friendly to US capital).
It’s also a running joke in the series that Sam Fisher hates Ronald Reagan with a passion.
Open source options not mentioned in article:
Movim: uses XMPP, supports E2EE, can do group chats, group video calls and screen sharing. Dev is currently developing discord-like channels with rooms.
Fluxer: Newly released GPLv3 discord clone coded from scratch. Still rough with some features like screen sharing not working reliably. Doesn’t currently support E2EE or federation (is planned), but can be self-hosted.
No prob! I’m excited for it too ^^
If you have a link to a discussion or issue where they’re tracking this, I’d love to follow it.
They’ve mentioned needing to accelerate the development of it on their Mastodon account in light of the Discord blunder, such as here, and they just had a user poll there that resulted in Discord-like grouped channels/spaces being the most requested.
Piggybacking off this:
XMPP and Deltachat are two excellent decentralized, self-hostable, federated, encrypted communication platforms. Deltachat is limited more to text (though it can send videos or audio files that can be played in the app like snapchat), but with XMPP, we could use the Movim Client.
Movim can do group video calls, screen sharing, differing permissions in groups, and even user blogs! And I believe the devs are working on adding discord-like channels with multiple groups under a single community. It’s currently our best option to shift to, and due to being FLOSS, will only ever improve (we’ll never need to worry about investment capital enshittification), so it’s not just kicking the can down the road, it’s a long-term, almost permanent solution.
Movim (an XMPP client) covers most of that. I think it’s currently working on having a collection of rooms be in one channel, but it already has group chats, group video calls, screen sharing, and permissions in groups.
It doesn’t have forums in it, but it does allow users to have blogs.
I’ve personally used 4 encrypted communication apps, here are my thoughts:
Signal: huge downside that it required a phone number (not sure if it still does), and the centralized nature of it makes me very wary of it. It worked reliably when I did use it, but I no longer use it.
Matrix with Element: As others mentioned, it leaks meta data. It wasn’t very reliable in my experience with encrypted group chats. Messages would constantly not be readable by other users in the chat, requiring frequent re-sending to finally get through. Overall I found it very frustrating to use.
XMPP: Experience can somewhat vary depending on the app used. With the Movim desktop front-end, I can sometimes have issues with encrypted messages not getting unencrypted (possibly just user error on my part), but with mobile apps like Conversations or Monocles, its been pretty much 100% reliable. Doesn’t drain my battery either. Would recommend.
Deltachat: I’ve used this the least, but I really like it. Super easy to connect to friends and join a group chat, its all encrypted by default so no real chance of encountering an unencrypted message, very nice UI, is available on all platforms as one app, and has been 100% reliable with low battery drain. Highly recommend if you don’t need to make voice calls (it can do texts, images, and supports voice/video files you can send and play within the app).
One of the biggest unions, the UAW, was already openly planning and preparing for a general strike on may 1st 2028 (planned before trump won the election), but it’s likely we’ll have to move that up. The point is, the will is there, we just need unions to collaborate, plan, and prepare.
All of the calls for one before were usually never by actual unions, as most mainstream unions are afraid to engage in one due to the taft-heartley act, and there just wasn’t the will to engage in that battle, nor were many of them preparing for it due to most unions losing their radical spirit in favor of small wage gains.
But the quick descent into fascism is seemingly finally waking them up to the need to organize one, which is happening.
I’m not saying it’d be a bad idea to prepare in other ways if the strike fails, but realize that unless there’s a fracturing of the military that joins the resistance, any violent resistance would have to be extremely limited to an Irish Troubles style at best, as anything more direct would be an open slaughter.
A violent turn would also mean losing the participation of non-violent resistance as it becomes too dangerous, leaving only a minority of militants willing to continue. I’d highly recommend reading this article, which explores the downsides of turning away from non-violent resistance.
It’s called piefed because it was built with Python (pie) and fed stands for federated. It’s only what the software (which is open source) is named.
Lemmy, piefed, mastodon, etc, are all a part of the Fediverse, which also has fed in the name…
A little under 10% of the US population is unionized, and some of the most essential jobs fall under that: train shipping, trucking, port workers, healthcare, etc.
If we can prepare them to enact a general strike, the entire country would be effectively shut down.
One of the biggest unions, the UAW, was already openly planning and preparing for a general strike on may 1st 2028 (planned before trump won the election), but it’s likely we’ll have to move that up. The point is, the will is there, we just need unions to collaborate, plan, and prepare.
It absolutely is! And we haven’t even tried our most powerful non-violent tactic yet: a proper, long-term, nation wide General Strike.
The country would be brought to its knees if suddenly deprived of profit and labor, allowing us to simply ignore the democrats and their lack of spine, and instead demand real changes (abolishing ICE should be towards the top of the list).
That tactic was extremely effective in Chile in 2019, and had they not fallen for the trick of liberal reform, they would’ve had a successful revolution on their hands with virtually no bloodshed.
There are some concrete steps all of us can take toward enacting that hard-core general strike to make it more viable and bearable for us all. (the titles below expand if you click them).
As we’re seeing, deadly violence is being used against us and it will only continue. It extremely important to have the skills to be able to keep yourself and others alive if they get hurt.
Tacticool Girlfriend provides a great introduction to building a personal first aid kit, called an IFAK, which can deal with things like bullet wounds and other serious bleeding wounds. I also want to emphasize her recommendation of only buying medical gear from reputable sources (not Amazon!), such as North American Rescue to avoid fakes that could cost you your life.
But you’ll need to learn how to use that equipment, too. The best resource for that is to take a local Stop The Bleed class, which are pretty widely available in most places. They may cost a small fee, but can also sometimes be free. Alternatively, if you cannot access a local class, this video by PrepMedic will give you a solid understanding of how to use Tourniquets and Gauze for wound packing.
Injuries are less harmful if they are tended to early. Learning first aid can help conserve resources when healthcare becomes unaffordable. Having several medics in case of harm by police is an extremely powerful morale booster during a protest that may become a police riot. When you become comfortable with the basics of first aid, riot medicine is the next suggested step.
If you haven’t already, get to know your neighbors. Mutual aid is a willingness to support and grow your community. This can include informal networks through friends, tenant/renter organizations, solidarity groups, and industrial unions.
These are groups using direct action to solve each other’s problems. Building strong communities makes it difficult for fascism to take root. The actions of the government are going to hit every community hard, and the ones who build trust in each other and work together are most likely to survive. We’ve been building a list of resources in !inperson@slrpnk.net to help you on your way. Also check out this handy guide to find existing groups in your area.
This isn’t only for your own community protection. Your ability to organize today will change the political landscape tomorrow. When revolution occurs, the social organizations that show the greatest resilience through the regime are the ones typically calling the shots when the dust settles. When it comes to elections, get out the vote drives are useless if most of the voters are fascists. At some point, you have to do grassroots political education if you don’t want fascist candidates winning elections. Mutual aid networks are excellent forums not only for teaching each other good political ideas, but demonstrating them in practice.
If you aren’t in a union (or even if you are, it’s worth dual-carding), consider joining the IWW to unionize your workplace (bonus: you’ll get higher wages, better benefits, and more time off if you succeed!) to strengthen a general strike if we manage to enact one, as most unions have a strike fund that can supplement your income during a general strike to make it more financially bearable (you should also save as much money as you can reasonably do, so it can also be used to keep yourself afloat during a strike). A General Strike is officially planned by the UAW for May 1st 2028, but it was planned before Trump was elected, and by then may be too late, so prepare now for one that may start sooner.
And for our international friends, you should join one as well, as fascism is gaining momentum globally. If your country isn’t listed below, just contact the IWW directly in the link above, and they’ll help you set up a new local branch.
Sometimes benign seeming efforts can turn into unexpected personal data collecting traps. Like an obscure website for exchanging contact info with other students turning into a global ad-tech surveillance network (Facebook), or innocent seeming online personality tests being use to harvest character profiles. Even Etsy, Reddit, Tinder, and Duolingo are feeding information to US Government Agencies like ICE.
Security culture is commonly used to describe the general awareness of such potential traps and how it can affect groups or entire communities. This goes beyond mere individual privacy efforts, as without joint efforts these often fail to work.
Especially in activist circles, security culture is paramount. For opsec reasons not everyone in the group might be aware of what clandestine efforts others are involved in, but with a general security culture many potential data leaks can be avoided.
Movements are made by the volume of their participants, and the easier and less dangerous it is to participate, the more people will get involved. As more people get involved, individual involvement becomes even less dangerous, creating a virtuous cycle.
We’ll start it off with some General Advice:
For a full guide on what encrypted communications platforms to use, and how to stay off the radar, read the Digital Camouflage section within the Monthly Meta post here (you’ll need to scroll down. I’d add it here, but it won’t fit in this comment).
I’d also highly recommend Full Spectrum Resistance to anyone who wants further info on how to resist (audiobook version here).
There’s multiple piefed instances, but I don’t see why any of the general instances would oppose you creating a community that has archive.org links, it’s not like its a pirate site or anything.
You could also continue to post to the archive community on .ml from a piefed instance.
For anyone considering something similar, I’d suggest hosting a Movim instance over Matrix, as it’s far easier to set up and configure since it uses XMPP instead. Should be lighter on resources too.