The LeafFilter saga, Part 2: How I used consumer power to get what I deserved
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The LeafFilter saga, Part 2: How I used consumer power to get what I deserved

Yesterday, I told the story of how LeafFilter failed to show up for three appointments — and never called me — when scheduled to perform service at my house in Maine. I described the events from November 1 to December 9, when I’d finally had it with the company and was prepared to tell the…

The LeafFilter saga, or how to use social media to clamber out of the gutter

The LeafFilter saga, or how to use social media to clamber out of the gutter

Sometimes a company doesn’t live up to what it has promised you. That can make you angry. What should you do about it? This post is about what happened when a company called LeafFilter disappointed me, and what I did about it. My father’s mirror I want to start by talking about my father. The…

Social media doesn’t sell books. It lights sparks.

Social media doesn’t sell books. It lights sparks.

When it comes to book sales, does a social media following guarantee sales? Of course not. That’s what’s behind the New York Times piece, “Millions of Followers? For Book Sales, ‘It’s Unreliable.’ ,” a naive and oversimplified take on what it takes to sell books. How books sell In the olden days — before COVID…

The impossibility of enforcing Twitter’s squishy new policy on private media

The impossibility of enforcing Twitter’s squishy new policy on private media

Twitter announced yesterday that it would allow people to remove unwanted photos or video of themselves. But there are lots of ill-defined exceptions, and the policy as a whole will be unwieldy to enforce. Analyzing the new policy changes Twitter already bans posting of people’s private information (“doxing”). Here’s the start of the blog post…

Why Mark Zuckerberg doesn’t realize Facebook is evil

Why Mark Zuckerberg doesn’t realize Facebook is evil

Facebook whistleblower Frances Haugen testified in Congress yesterday. And Mark Zuckerberg was mystified. He was surely thinking, “Can’t they see that we’re out to help humanity?” Today I deconstruct his sincere statement to employees after all the negative news about Facebook in the past month. If you read this critically and with the right perspective,…

After Frances Haugen’s interview on “60 Minutes,” we must assume the worst about Facebook

After Frances Haugen’s interview on “60 Minutes,” we must assume the worst about Facebook

We now know that Frances Haugen, Facebook’s former civic integrity product manager, is the whistleblower who leaked Facebook’s internal documents to the Wall Street Journal. She was just interviewed on “60 Minutes.” And after listening to her, I no longer trust anything Mark Zuckerberg or Facebook’s communications team has to say. On “60 Minutes,” Haugen…

The New York Times says Accenture gets $500m for Facebook moderation. Why is this news?

The New York Times says Accenture gets $500m for Facebook moderation. Why is this news?

Yesterday, the New York Times published a piece called “The Silent Partner Cleaning Up Facebook for $500 Million a Year.” Was it actually news, and should it change anything? What’s the news here? Here’s what’s in the article, most of which is far from shocking. Much of it repeats the revelations in an excellent exposé…

How to argue better — and what to teach your children about arguing

How to argue better — and what to teach your children about arguing

I love arguing — if it’s done right. There are basically two kinds of arguments. I only like arguing to reach the truth. Arguing for enlightenment In school, I learned that science is about testing out what is true about the real world, to gain insight. I liked that idea. I am not a scientist,…