"“Nextdoor taught me that my neighbors are bad people,” said one former subscriber online. “I really would have preferred not to know that.” It’s not entirely the fault of the people who run Nextdoor. They’ve got all kinds of reminders to be kind, to not be racist, to not overreact. But its very existence fosters exactly that. It’s like owning a roadside bar and telling people not to drink and drive."
@danlyke I learned most of my neighbors are racist, paranoid, semi-literate, and MAGA. Oh yes, and they all apparently will meet a knock at the door with a gun drawn. Fun times.
Peak vigilance is given to cellphone shots of any dog walker who doesn't immediately clean up dog poop.
Small town Nextdoors are much nicer. I don't use it a whole lot myself but see a lot of the conversations. I can boast being the founder of my Nextdoor neighborhood.
@the_Effekt good to hear. I grew up super rural, and have gradually been migrating more and more urban, and have realized at each shift that I had to make more effort to meet my neighbors.
Like remembering the way neighbors came together for a barn burning or a death out in the boonies, vs introducing neighbors who've lived across across the street from each other for a decade or three to each other...
@the_Effekt I spent 1st through 7th grades on a dirt road in rural New York, and a good portion of the late '80s and early '90s rock climbing and whitewater paddling in Tennessee, and have moved through progressively larger towns in California and am now realizing I should have just committed to a big city earlier.
But, here I am, sunk into this suburban city of 60k, so I may as well make the most of it. Took me too long to realize that I wanted to play with the big kids more.
@danlyke
Aside from the spying, racism and paranoia, there's another important reason to skip signing up for Nextdoor - privacy. If you give them your real name, address, etc, then of course your data will be sold.
Supposedly there's a way to opt out. Maybe I'm the one who is paranoid but I don't trust them so I never signed up.
@ahimsa_pdx I'm old enough to remember when we published that in a thick book called the "White Pages", so I haven't been too freaked out about that. Given that everyone else has all my stuff, but...
I also realize that there's a lot of privilege in being able to be out there about personal identity.
Like the roadside bar, it's not Nextdoor's fault - although like a roadside bar that offers cab or rideshare & cuts people off if they're too drunk to drive, Nextdoor could moderate. But they don't want to, because that would make them responsible in a way, and it would cut into profits. So really, it is actively Nextdoor's fault.
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