I hope this becomes the norm. Having tried to form a bargaining unit myself I can tell you it’s an uphill battle. Some workers are vehemently against it still and they will successfully encourage others to act against their own class interests.
A Google employee claimed in 2022 that they had sentient AI. He was sacked. What were his motivations? Do you believe he was right?
They aren’t a homogenous group. They don’t all believe this. The “AI will kill us all” narrative just sells really well.
When trying to organise colleagues you need to exercise a certain level of trust or it will never get off the ground. Unfortunately boot lickers will take advantage of that. It’s to be expected.
I think you’re jumping the gun a bit. They’re just saying that requiring a phone number added a barrier against spammers and they want to be sure this change doesn’t open the flood gates.
From the article:
"We gotta figure out some way to induce a cost for signing up without a phone number”, Kret said.
It’s unclear whether this means that registration without a phone number will become a paid feature.
However, “cost” does not necessarily mean a monetary fee; it could also refer to another barrier designed to prevent abuse.
Yes, it’s the same as mitm. I get that it’s to avoid gendering the term but it doesn’t really roll off the tongue or preserve the existing abbreviation. I’ve heard the alternatives: machine in the middle, mallory in the middle or, my favourite, Malcolm in the middle.