Welcome to the series "Bitcoin is the Door. FOSS is the Key," exclusively featured in Stacker News under the "Mining_Self_Hosting_FOSS" territory. This marks the beginning of a series detailing the reasons and methods behind my journey into self-hosting, despite my limited expertise in computer science, system management, and engineering.
Before delving into the prelude and prequel of my story, let me provide a spoiler. I'm a foreigner residing in a country recently dubbed the most sanctioned on Earth. Having experienced firsthand the consequences of falling out of favor with Silicon Valley and the G8, I've witnessed the impact on personal and work life, despite having no involvement in the geopolitical events leading to those sanctions. This narrative unfolds the challenges faced when one, without control over such events, realizes the vulnerability to removal from the corporate internet we all currently face.
This set of stories will highlight the susceptibility we all share to cancellation, thanks to a button ready to erase us from the internet thats already in place. I have seen it in action, it was a catalyst to my release, yet, It's imperative to stop this, and it needs to happen now.
At the time of writing, I've significantly reduced my reliance on Google apps and have adopted 90% FOSS software in my daily life. This has contributed to a happier existence thats partly based on knowing that I've drastically reduced corporate surveillance. The feeling is priceless and potentially lifesaving.
The upcoming stories recount true events from the past year and a half that prompted significant life changes, leading me to distance myself radically from internet corporations. This experience inspired the creation of this community and the establishment of a small corner in the bitcoin world that seeks to emphasise the importance of becoming self-hosted and achieving uncensorable status, regardless of our levels of computer literacy.
If a computer pleb like me could accomplish it, anyone can.
Episode 01: The Prequel - Google Drive
Let's start with another spoiler, this is the least "traumatic" story in the series, what will be coming in further episodes will pale this in comparison.
Im a music producer. I make records for a living. This means that my livelihood revolves around creating and distributing numerous WAV files via cloud services. On Thursday, Mar 24, 2022, at 10:31 PM, I received a series of emails from Google stating, "Your file violates Google Drive's Terms of Service." Specifically, the message read: "Your file '._TOM 2 BEYERDYNAMICS_08.wav' contains content that violates Google Drive's Copyright Infringement policy, and hence, some features related to this file may have been restricted. Restricted file." Approximately 100 files were affected.
These files, created in my recording studio, were inaccessible to both me and my clients. It was the first tangible, real-life example of the abstract notion that our data is not truly ours.
The situation took a sinister turn when I expressed my frustration on Twitter, stating,
"The 'subscription' economy is a disgrace and we must replace it. Just got an email from Google telling me that the guitar tracks I recorded for a band here in Moscow break copyright rules of Google Drive ((??)) The system auto-flagged 100 files from my audio recordings."
Surprisingly, even though I didn't tag anyone in that tweet, Google responded the following ((INCLUDING MY NAME!!)):
"Hi, Leonardo. Thanks for reaching out! Check this article to learn more about requesting a review of a violation: https://goo.gle/39cqBCL. Please visit the Community Forum for any additional assistance (https://goo.gle/398FS7E). Thanks again."
. . .
"Reaching Out?... REACHING OUT! I DIDN'T EVEN CONTACT YOU!! ((angry emoji face)) Why are you even answering?"
To be honest, the situation was sorted after a couple of days. I reached out to google and they released the files for me, but the writing on the wall was clear. This as a line in the sand that google crossed. I immediately understood the potential of this censorship-prone structure and that I had to leave the "dependant mindset" immediately, and once and for all.
This embarked me onto a "tech trip" that brings us here. My hope is that this may inspire others on a journey of sorts. You only leave the matrix if you decide you need to get out of the matrix. The good news is that the tools and resources are ready and available for us to re-plug.
-- Screenshots & tweets --