It would be neat if there was a forum that provided a comment section for every website url. Users could use a browser add-on to display the comment section when they browse to a page. The key point here is that there is only one comment section per url. I think this is different enough from reddit. HN, etc that it could be interesting in a unique way.
Back in the early, heigh-days of the web, there was a service started up that allowed anyone to add any annotations to a web site that they desired - I thought this was pretty neat, until it wasn't, due to abuse.
But I still think we need this kind of service, allowing anonymous annotations that could be turned on/off as a visible layer for any visitor to a website. Seems to me, it might be time for this idea to be re-tried ..
You might be interested in Memex. Right now its mostly for personal annotations but they are currently also adding social features.
https://getmemex.com/
This actually already existed and it was (is) called Dissenter (https://dissenter.com/). It is built by Gab, a pro free speech social network that has been maligned by the political left and anti free speech crowd.
In an absolutely shocking affront to the neutrality of web browsers, Firefox banned Dissenter from their extension stores (https://reclaimthenet.org/firefox-rejects-free-speech-bans-f...) because they disagree with an exceedingly small number of offensive comments made on there. Chrome later did the same and Dissenter has its own browser now (https://reclaimthenet.org/dissenter-free-speech-browser/). But obviously being removed from those browsers’ extension stores seriously limits its reach.
There are many HN comments saying “you can just discuss these articles elsewhere”, but when tech companies are censoring/deplatforming any views they disagree with in unison, there aren’t ways to have honest and open discussions unless you align with a certain worldview (progressive views) or have incredibly limited reach. You simply can’t speak freely on controversial topics like gender identity or critical race theory or illegal immigration on Reddit, Twitter, on your own apps in App stores (see bans of Gab or Parler), or even our web browsers. I will be not at all surprised when it comes down to browsers or phones blocking which websites you can visit.
Calling Gab pro free speech is pretty rich. They ban people for being Democrats or being critical of gab itself. They just don't ban people for anti semitism.
Dissenter also got banned from the Mozilla and Google Chrome web stores[0]. I can't help wondering, though, if banning software for allowing people to access offensive web content might be a policy that browser makers wouldn't want selectively applied to their products in OS app stores.
It's fine to propose technical solutions like browser add-ons.
But how does this address the problem of comment sections easily devolving into a dumpster fire? There's a reason why newspapers, like the Inquirer, are turning off their comment sections. That reason is sound.
It's like hosting a block party and having it overrun by neighborhood maniacs, weirdos, libertarians and homeless people. What you're proposing is a means for inviting, organizing and publicizing commentary for all content on the web whether the content creator wants it or not.
