Revert "remove spinster app metadata"
This PR reverts !6013 (merged) which was merged without any notification to the project maintainers: me, @marykatefain, or @socjuswiz.
I'd like to address the points made in !6013 (merged).
1. ConnyDuck doesn't like Spinster
The nature of FOSS is that code is shared. ConnyDuck said, "If you don't like it, fork it" so we did. It doesn't matter whether ConnyDuck likes it or not, it is a FOSS project. We are the maintainers of this project, not ConnyDuck. If FOSS projects are not allowed to fork because the original creator doesn't like it, FOSS is in big trouble.
2. Alex Gleason something-something Gab
This subject has been beaten to death. Yes, I like some aspects of Gab. There are other aspects of it I despise. So what? My personal take has nothing to do with whether Spinster should be in F-Droid. Spinster uses some Gab code, but recently the project has been forked into Soapbox which removes all mentions of "Gab" from the user-facing side.
These comments, and major focus on me personally, erase the contributions of the numerous women who have built this project from the ground up, including co-founder @marykatefain, developer @happyriver, and the mod team who spend hours keeping the Spinster community healthy. I'm just a fool with a big mouth who says dumb things online sometimes and regrets it. Don't throw the baby out with the bathwater. For the record, I'm trying to distance myself from Spinster, but it makes it hard when Spinster gets cancelled due to accusations about me.
You should also know, that I'm not getting a dime from all this! I'm a 26 year old guy living with my parents. I'm not some secret agent from Gab like people are saying. My hero is Aaron Swartz and I'm just trying to make the internet better with what little I have.
3. Spinster didn't moderate one post in a way I don't like
The moderation examples in !6013 (merged) are taken completely out of context and give us very little insight into how Spinster's moderation policies actually work. Creating an account solely for the purpose of reporting other users is not a legitimate use of Spinster, and I believe the mods were justified in their response to him.
Of the 5 examples given, only one is even questionable. The other 4 are just opinions. Maybe that last one would have been looked at with more scrutiny if the reporting user - with no profile picture, posts, or blurb - had not just illegitimately reported 4 other posts. Spinster deals with trolls falsely reporting posts all the time.
The user even admitted that only one of the 5 posts were questionable:
In my opinion, the moderation should have at least deleted the demonisation posting.
Spinster encourages people to contact abuse@spinster.xyz when they believe a moderation action has been made in error. This user did not attempt to do that. There was room for discussion about whether this moderation action was a mistake. Entirely deleting Spinster from the F-Droid repo without notification is an extremely heavy-handed response to one moderation action.
Conclusion
I believe the removal of Spinster was done in bad faith, and only because it was convenient to save F-Droid some face among the users who are bullying them online. F-Droid maintainers chose not to notify us of this merge request intentionally. It's clear they knew how to contact us, because they could have notified the originally submitter (@socjuswiz) or me, who Bubu tagged after the app was removed.
I believe the above comment is very true, and it highlights why decisions need to be made based on values, and not based on which side is making the most noise. I believe that F-Droid has set a precedent to give into bullies, summed up nicely by @socjuswiz's statement:
Spinster, @marykatefain and I personally, have gone to great lengths to empower people with free software. Spinster has been attacked, slandered, and discriminated against in various ways since it was created. We have never exhibited any of that behavior. Our goal is to make the world a better place.
Spinster does not discriminate against anyone. It allows people to have open conversations. The community isn't perfect, but it's an experiment. We encourage everyone to use our software and services, including (and especially) people we disagree with.
We believe in the culture of sharing that FOSS was founded upon - in helping everyone who needs it, even our political opponents. I don't believe our opponents are our enemies, and that we can set aside our differences and work alongside one-another. If we cannot even do that, I'm dearly concerned for the future.
Further reading: