The Editor of OSNews.com has declared that I, Lunduke, am a member of the Nazi party -- and encourages others to murder me.
I repeat: A Tech Journalist has stated -- as a matter of fact -- that a proud Jewish man is a Nazi that must be killed.
Absolutely insane.
On Friday, July 26th, the Editor of OSNews.com (Thom Holwerda), posted the following to his Mastodon account:
"Hey linuxrocks.online, you have a nazi infestation. Considering your instance seems to use only approved registrations, this surely raises about a million red flags."
What was the "Nazi infestation" he speaks of? He includes a screenshot of The Lunduke Journal account to make it clear who he was refering to.
While this is already absolutely insane (no sane person would call a proud Jewish man a member of the Nazi party)... it gets far, far worse.
A few hours later, the OSNews.com Editor followed up with the following statement:
"Since the instance linuxrocks.online is openly, knowingly, and willingly hosting nazis, I'm going to block the whole instance. If you're a follower on said nazi instance, I suggest you reconsider your choice of instance.
No quarter for nazis. The only good nazi is a dead nazi."
"No quarter for nazis. The only good nazi is a dead nazi."
Am I a Nazi? Obviously not. But, that Tech Journalist says that I am a Nazi. And I must be killed.
Which means, according to the Editor of OSNews, "The only good [Lunduke] is a dead [Lunduke]."
Is it libel? Without question. Is this a clear threat of violence? Absolutely.
He also appears to be stating that anyone who simply exists on the same server as me is, by proximity, also a Nazi. And they must also be murdered.
Few Will Condemn This
I wish I could say this was a completely isolated incident.
The sad fact is, a number of Tech Journalists share the extreme, Leftist, disturbed, violent views of the Editor of OSNews. They believe that many groups (including both Conservatives and Jews) are evil "Nazis" who must be murdered.
And, while many other Tech Journalists do not agree with those warped, twisted ideas... few, if any, will speak out against those calls for violence and death.
All Hope Is Not Lost
In those vile messages quoted above, the Editor of OSNews was clearly attempting to bully the administrator of a specific server -- whose only crime was allowing me to exist.
How did that server's administrator respond? In an incredibly reasonable way:
"We do not appreciate name-calling here. Would you like to present your evidence that a user needs to be removed rather than going straight to name-calling."
No name-calling. Present evidence if you have a concern.
Reasonable. Calm. Practical.
Seeing that sort of response gave me just a little extra hope for the future of the Open Source and general computer industries. If we can get more brave, reasonable, thoughtful people -- like that server administrator -- speaking against the hate and violence of people like the Editor of OSNews... we might just stand a chance.
(Of course, no response given -- by the OSNews Editor -- to this reasonable request.)
A Related Thought From Lunduke
Let's pause, and take a step back. I'd like to talk, for just a moment, about politically charged discussions (like this one) within the broader Tech World... and on The Lunduke Journal specifically.
When I first started The Lunduke Journal, I focused entirely on the technical aspects of computing. "Stay clear of politics, Lunduke," I told myself. "Stick to the happy tech stuff!"
And, by and large, I managed to stay true to that for many years (with no more than a passing, momentary blip into politically charged topics once in a blue moon).
But, here we stand.
At a time when people are being banned from Open Source projects solely because of their political leanings (often leading to the complete destruction of those projects). When entire Open Source organizations and concepts are being re-shaped -- into something not-at-all "Open" -- by political activists. When Big Tech corporations are regularly discriminating against people based on the color of their skin or their sex.
And when, like we saw today, a Tech Journalist declares that Conservative Jewish Nerds (and the people who exist near them) are "Nazis" who need to be murdered.
Staying quiet on these issues is simply not an option.
Not for The Lunduke Journal. And not for any other Tech Journalist worth a damn.
It is well past time to speak out against this insanity. If you are a Tech Journalist (in whatever form... articles, podcasts, videos), shine a light on these stories. Show people the damage that is being done to the world of computing by these political extremists.
The Lunduke Journal can't do this all alone. But if I have to do it on my own... I will.
Because I love computing. I love the history of it, the technical aspects, the future... all of it. And computing is worth saving.
So, I will keep covering all of it. Even if these extremists keep threatening to kill me.
