Some of you have been asking why the #EU digital policy account isn't on the #Fediverse..

[hpod16@eupolicy.social]

Some of you have been asking why the #EU digital policy account isn't on the #Fediverse..
Well, today they are! Go follow the official #DigitalEU account: @digitaleu for updates about #OpenSource, #Tech and #DigitalSovereignty, and much more!
Today is a good day for the open source community. Stay tuned for more announcements.

[jan@social.dytrych.cloud]

@hpod16 @digitaleu nice, following! Thanks

[zer0unplanned@friendica.rogueproject.org]

@hpod16 With their age verification laws they wanna set etc?
For news about more dystopia as an ICE like agency?
For other nonsensical laws that just benefit the wealthy or for what?
No thank you for your endorsement.

[hpod16@eupolicy.social]

@zer0unplanned
Look, I understand wanting to be critical, but feel free to be constructive too!
The EU is not a dictatorship, and there are many ways that you can get involved and voice your views.
You could launch a #EuropeanCitizenInitiative, or support an existing one, check the #HaveYourSay portal for open public consultations on topics you care about, or start a discussion thread on the #CitizenEngagementPlatform.
Or get involved through civil society orgs!

[hpod16@eupolicy.social]

@zer0unplanned
Citizen engagement platform: https://citizens.ec.europa.eu/index_en

Here you can post comments and start threads that will actually be read by policy people! (Rather than screaming into the void that is social media, but keep doing that too)

[zer0unplanned@friendica.rogueproject.org]

@hpod16 Sorry if I sounded over critical, but no one can stop this. We flow silently to another World my generation is not adapted with. For a young person all this is normal ( not judging as young ) but there are fundamental changes that undermine privacy, a flagship of the EU with it's GDPR that contraverse new laws they get in to control the crowd which bring a great risk to user as we know breaches happen and will keep happening that was my most concerning point. I embrace as you say the benefits and should be less critical as well if you wish so, thank you for the reminder : )

in edit: I embrace eg. their open source usage for all official instances but why not the users or the people those 350 million that didn't voted on Ursula?

[zer0unplanned@friendica.rogueproject.org]

@hpod16 Thank you Hannah! : )

[paelnever@masto.es]

@hpod16 @digitaleu
No, actually many people is asking themselves just the opposite, i mean, why you are here. Regardless of your public relations efforts you already know you are not going to fool anybody on this network and the amount of people here is comparatively small, so you are just wasting time and effort.

[paelnever@masto.es]

@hpod16 @zer0unplanned

Yes, the EU it IS actually a dictatorship, otherwise show me the ballot with the name of von der layen

[zer0unplanned@friendica.rogueproject.org]

@paelnever @hpod16 They want to appoint Kaja Kallas to broker a talk with Russia.. know that all but all Eastern EU states hate Russia.. we in the West have no problems with Russians.

[tony_meredith@mastodon.me.uk]

@hpod16
How soon do you think until they spot the typo in the profile?? @digitaleu
# Execurtive

[hpod16@eupolicy.social]

@Tony_Meredith @digitaleu
Thanks for flagging! they fixed it :)

[narutouzumaki45279@mastodon.social]

@hpod16 @digitaleu See this blogger has written some thing new
https://vertextechjournal.blogspot.com/2026/06/NVIDIA%20and%20Microsoft%20%20Windows%20PCs.html

[sab@hostux.social]

The Commission president is proposed by the Council and elected by the European Parliament through majority vote.

So Von der Leyen was first nominated by democratically elected governments, and then elected by a directly elected parliament.

Electing leaders indirectly rather than directly is common in democracies. According to your logic Sweden is a dictatorship.
@paelnever @hpod16 @zer0unplanned

[hpod16@eupolicy.social]

@sab
Thx for answering… I’m so tired of explaining that one. Working on a video about exactly this question at the moment tho!

[zer0unplanned@friendica.rogueproject.org]

@sab @paelnever @hpod16 Is that Democracy in your way of view?

[sab@hostux.social]

Laws being made by officials elected by people to represent them for set periods of time, and then being peacefully removed and replaced following elections if public opinion goes against them?

You forget about European Parliament elections.

There are plenty of democratic challenges in the EU, including that EP elections are considered second order so people use them to vote on national issues. It's not a perfect system, but it's not a dictatorship either.
@zer0unplanned @paelnever @hpod16

[zer0unplanned@friendica.rogueproject.org]

@sab @paelnever @hpod16 It is rigged in my view, I respect your opinion but I retain mine.

[sab@hostux.social]

It's rigged in its ways. Lobbying is powerful and mostly available to the rich. Right wingers own the media. National narratives tend to discourage honest engagement on the EU level, rendering EU democracy an empty shell. The list goes on.

I just think it's worth going into more nuanced takes rather than resorting to hyperboles.

Judging by the UK we wouldn't be much better off without it, so we better fix it instead. Which requires understanding and nuance.
@zer0unplanned @paelnever @hpod16

[paelnever@masto.es]

@sab @zer0unplanned
Letting aside the fact that economic power already can handle what people vote just by controlling all the info the people receive. That what you call "indirect" election is a de-facto dictatorship. Economic power just have to bribe/blackmail a bunch of (mostly already corrupted) politicians to put the people they want in charge. It's fine if you are naive but please don't insult intelligence believing we all are.