WestQuester So should I throw a tantrum and demand that they go back to using Signal with me and only me or else I don't need them in my life? Or should I "take an interest in them as a human" and accommodate them?
I think a tantrum would be childish but you do you. I'm not going to take that option away from you. It's up to everyone to choose how to live their lives. I'm just a stranger on the internet :)
Let me get this straight: I never expected you to force everyone you know to use Signal. I wanted you to think about the problem from a different side. You seem to be overly focused on a single perspective ("Most people don't care about privacy.") despite understanding limitated usefulness of this (privacy) argument in getting people to be a part of positive change. I wanted to show what can be done if you deem it applicable individually, on a per-case basis. And why I believe it is important to never give up.
WestQuester And that goes both ways.
You asked for a reason, I provided a valid one, how this affects your situation is up to be judged by you.
If you value specific people who won't get Signal and you still want to retain your online connection with them, I couldn't be happier iMessage workaround is there for you! Seriously, it's much better than SMS and I would rather have people use it instead of whatsapp.
The hill that I am still willing to die on is: it's not good enough. Objectively.
n3t_admin Freedom is lost when we do nothing, so be the change and be persistent
Exactly this.
Being persistent doesn't have to be involved with being fixated and obnoxious about it. Sometimes all it takes is some creativity and patience.
WestQuester And that's what I find wrong with the "use Signal or else just get lost" ultimatum I regularly see come up.
mmmm major flaw in the already hugely flawed 'just get them to use signal or dump them as friends' mantra.
This seems to be a strategy used by the vocal minority. Fear not, I do not represent advocates of this method. I represent solely my logical thinking capability. I try to take as many factors into consideration as I can before coming up with what is hopefully a reasonable, actionable and meaningful suggestion.
mmmm none of actually answers the question of the cute girl at the bar.
I see, the cute girl at a bar is indeed a tough example. Regardless of what steps are taken, initially it has a great potential to end up in "necessary compromise" category, along with work, life and other stuff which we cannot always influence directly. That means using what's possible at the moment. If it turns out to be iMessage on GOS, great! Still, this doesn't mean that you should entirely give up. You can get to know each other before coming up with a solution to something that is important for you. And maybe even for her:
IcyScroll Everyone is different but there are values that overwhelming majority of people care about. Trustworthiness, friendliness, flexibility, stability, simplicity, ease of use, security, privacy... that "cute girl at a bar" is no exception to this. Maybe she would love to feel safe and communicate in a way that doesn't reveal her phone number. Maybe she hates getting ads in her messaging apps.
Why does everyone seem to have skipped reading this part?