I just found out about a covid forum called Still Coviding & Beyond. Does anyone have an invite? I feel like I'm signing up for a private torrent tracker!

Are there other worthwhile covid groups out there? Being permanently fucked up and unable to have a social life really makes one want to have people to talk to.

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[–] JoeByeThen@hexbear.net 10 points 3 weeks ago (3 children)

I use Facebook for 2 things. Still coviding groups and marketplace. There's almost assuredly a group for your local area (state, metropolis, etc) and from there you can look for the off facebook groups.

If you have a mask bloc in your state you can message them and see if they can point you towards groups they coordinate with.

You can also try the Refresh Connections app. I signed up for it myself, but haven't really done much with it.

R/ZeroCovidCommunity on reddit, which is becoming less and less zero Covid and more being aware of Covid while complaining about other people's precautions, unfortunately.

I don't use them but there's also r/masks4all and I think a subreddit for lovgcovid victims.

[–] CommunistCuddlefish@hexbear.net 7 points 3 weeks ago (3 children)

I think there was a subreddit called /r/covid19pandemic that split off from zcc for not being zero-covid enough and/or not being explicitly anti-zionist, as well

[–] mononoke 6 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago) (1 children)

I like that one a lot but it's very inactive in comparison, which makes sense. Some of the regulars there are also ML-types from what I can tell. I will say I am also super disappointed in zcc for same reasons already mentioned. I would not have found my city's still-COVIDing group, or my current roommate, without someone randomly DMing me there after I reached out.

[–] JoeByeThen@hexbear.net 6 points 3 weeks ago (2 children)

I will say I am also super disappointed in zcc for same reasons already mentioned.

Glad it's not just me. Really feel like the mods have dropped the ball there. I've seen posts of people complaining about other people's precautions being too harsh and getting like hundreds of comments supporting their complaints. It's becoming Nazi bar type shit. doomer

[–] bigpharmasutra@hexbear.net 4 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

I signed up and made my first post in there. It got flagged by the auto-mod so I sent them a message. This is what they replied back:

"The post is up, as it has been for a while. We’re not typically able to respond to non-urgent questions about individual posts and comments. We clear the queue a few times a day. Thank you for understanding."

[–] JoeByeThen@hexbear.net 3 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

yea Yeah, that's basically all of reddit now, unfortunately. The automod flags my shit all the time and they don't get approved until the conversation has moved on.

[–] bigpharmasutra@hexbear.net 3 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

Fuck that's bleak.

[–] JoeByeThen@hexbear.net 3 points 3 weeks ago

sadness-abysmal

[–] mononoke 3 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago) (1 children)

It makes me very depressed to think about it all. If this is how low the bar goes after half a decade of struggle on a single front, how on earth does anyone expect any other "revolution" and its consequences to go? The disabled struggling for their survival carry the movement while the able-bodied fumble through it all and expect everyone to worship the ground they walk on for doing less than the bare minimum, often doing the same rug pull you see reactionaries do with sentiments like, "well I would have done this if you weren't so mean about it!" if there is even any acknowledgment at all. I'm not sure which is worse.

An utterly despairing forecast for everything else.

[–] JoeByeThen@hexbear.net 3 points 3 weeks ago

I'm right there with you. But, I try to remind myself that in the beginning people were largely on board with the 'flattening the curve' rhetoric and the mass majority were wearing masks, even if they were useless cloth things. We're living in a manufactured outcome and things can be pushed back with the same techniques they were undone with. Which means our true enemies haven't really changed and that allies can be won back. The path is there, it's just the longer this go on, the bigger the flame thrower we're gonna need to clear it. cool-zone

[–] JoeByeThen@hexbear.net 4 points 3 weeks ago

Noted thanks. I'll add that to the list of subreddits I always forget to check.😅

[–] bigpharmasutra@hexbear.net 2 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago) (1 children)

Oooh that sounds interesting. I'll check it out thanks.
Is it this one: https://red.artemislena.eu/r/COVID19_Pandemic/ ?

[–] CommunistCuddlefish@hexbear.net 2 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

That's the one!

[–] bigpharmasutra@hexbear.net 2 points 3 weeks ago

Interesting. Not much discussion but something's better than nothing. I miss old school forums. Probably because covid has turned me into a 75 year old.

[–] nothx@hexbear.net 5 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

R/ZeroCovidCommunity on reddit, which is becoming less and less zero Covid and more being aware of Covid while complaining about other people's precautions, unfortunately.

Reddit libs giving up on precautions? Who woulda thunk…

I actually just rejoined Reddit for some niche communities and may have to check out the alternative subs that popped up.

[–] bigpharmasutra@hexbear.net 4 points 3 weeks ago

If you've got recs I'll take em.

The amount of "Well this is why I only mask some times" posts lately in ZCC has been disturbing to say the least.

[–] bigpharmasutra@hexbear.net 4 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

Ugh I was afraid you were going to say Facebook. I got off there 10 years ago and vowed never to go back.

I wonder if I can setup a fake profile with all the AI tech now? There's got to be a way to filter out their insane selfie and personal info requirements.

Sadly, no mask blocs here in my part of FL. Well, any active ones at least. A few groups were created but they all died on the vine.

Same with Refresh. Not a ton of active users when I signed ages ago. I'll have to give it another go.

I feel the same about ZCC. Its really gotten to be a place where people go to make themselves feel better about not doing as much as they should be doing. Masks4All is cool just for mask info, which is always helpful. Got some good info about my new Zimi order from there. I'll look into longcovid victims. Is it this one:

https://redlib.catsarch.com/r/covidlonghaulers/

My foray into Twitter has been a failure since I can't get my account to work properly. At least I can follow people and curate a feed of sorts. Of course, they fucked up the algorithim now so everything is displayed out of order and late. I'm surprised there isn't a stronger contingent on Bluesky. Seems like the libs and trans people that migrated there would be perfect for a covid community.

[–] JoeByeThen@hexbear.net 3 points 3 weeks ago

Yeah, I mean facebook sucks no doubt. But it's where a lot of folks are.

I'm in Florida as well, without doxxing myself I can at least confirm there is a Still Covid - Florida group. Activity is kind of hit or miss nowadays. It gets maybe one or two posts a week. There was a large amount of meetup activity in the tampa area, but the organizer for those meetups has been ill and is cutting back their involvement at the moment. Occasionally stuff pops up in the rest of the state (miami, ft lauderdale, orlando, jacksonville, gainesville. Outside of the fb group I'd guess Orlando is the most active because of a queer/disability group called Basically Wonderful that organizes a bunch of mask required mutual aid type community events. There's a couple of kinda dead discords floating around out there too, the now ill former meetup organizer was running one but shut it down and another smaller one popped up in response. I think Basically Wonderful has one also, that's probably much more active.

Yeah, I think that's the subreddit. Also CovidConnections, I think. I still mostly just check zcc, as shit as it is.

How you feel about fb is how I feel about twitter. I have an account or two, but rarely bother with it, mostly just refreshing tabs with specific users to check. Bluesky is an enigma to me.

[–] bigpharmasutra@hexbear.net 1 points 1 week ago

Update on this - found covidmeetups.com. Despite being one of the appallingly few hetersexual males that is covid conscious, there are exactly 8 people (hetero or otherwise) on the site that have been on within the last month in a 200 mile radius. In fact, I checked other states and there were fewer than 8 in those radius' as well. Not great folks!

Never heard back from that Still coviding and beyond forum.

Been referred to Facebook multiple times.

No secret discords as of yet, but apparently that is very popular.

Twitter is fun, and a horrendous time suck, but has been completely useless other than for shit posting.