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the only "threat" mentioned in the article is that someone said that if she didn't take the sign down they would post about it in a local artist community. Thre

the only "threat" mentioned in the article is that someone said that if she didn't take the sign down they would post about it in a local artist community. Threatening people with violence is always unwarranted, but trying to portray talking with other people about what someone is doing as a "threat" is disingenuous.

deleted 16d ago
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Legend2440 16d ago
Oh, please. You know what they're threatening: an internet mob. That's not just "talking".
- krapp 16d ago
  It was literally just talking, though.
brandon272 16d ago
I think that issuing an ultimatum where if the person does not do what you want, that you will be sharing your concerns with likeminded people online, with the underlying implication being that the business owner will end up experiencing some kind of negative outcome from that, is absolutely a threat.
- jlarocco 16d ago
  Okay, but I (and I suspect a lot of people) really don't care if somebody is threatened in that way. If the business person doesn't want other people to know what they're doing then maybe they shouldn't do it. It's not worthy of a news article, IMO. If somebody threatens them with violence (which is what "threat" is usually implying) then that's a different thing entirely.
  - fakedang 16d ago
    "It would be a pity if I were to tarnish jlarocco's reputation within my network. I even have his GitHub from his profile. I'll just talk shit about him to all the CTOs on the block and ensure he doesn't get a job again..." See how that works? That's why you should care. The so-called influencer-orienter culture has become a plague after social media. And these F&B businesses are the ones hit hardest - remember all those movies in the 90s and 00s about how some up and coming entrepreneur or chef had to win the approval of some hoity-toity food journalist? Also, rest assured, I'm not serious about badmouthing you or anyone here for that matter - just trying to illustrate a point.
    - jlarocco 16d ago
      Oh, I get it, but it only works if the "influencer" can actually influence a large enough group of customers, and my bet is that they can't. If it were me, I would have called their bluff and ignored them.
      - brandon272 16d ago
        In that analogy, you SHOULD assume the person is an influencer. In the case of this shop, we're talking about local retail. If you are a retail small business owner you have to assume that any customer can be an "influencer" and cause significant harm if they seek to trash your business online.
  - brandon272 16d ago
    If I tell someone that I am going to take a coordinated effort to undermine their business and get customers to stop shopping there, potentially resulting in the demise of the business, the loss of their livelihood and ability to provide for themselves or their family, I cannot think of any reasonable person who would not categorize that as a threat. A threat by no means is limited to violence only. I am really disturbed by language minimizes concrete actions taken to cause harm. "I am not hurting your business I am just talking to my friends!"
    - 16d ago
- mothzilla 16d ago
  Exactly. Pure cancel culture. Just be humble to understand the world might not agree with your views and let it be. Less "this can't exist" and more of "this is not for me".
  - jlarocco 16d ago
    Cancel culture or not, people are allowed to tell other people they know that something is happening, and those people can decide for themselves to patronize the business or not. To call it a threat is really exaggerating. The headline makes it sound like people are phoning in bomb threats and violence, which doesn't seem to be happening at all. Honestly, I think the business owner should have ignored these weak "threats" altogether. It doesn't have anything to do with coffee and it's unlikely they'll get any business because they use AI, so it can only hurt them.
    - jackb4040 16d ago
      If the Montgomery Bus Boycott happened today most Americans would call it cancel culture.
    - mothzilla 16d ago
      I get you think the word is too heavy but remember: it's a small business and bad press is a serious thing. It could be enough to shut down the place. Just see how afraid local shop owners are of Yelp. You get review bombed there and you have a serious problem. You don't know if these artists won't just unload their (just) frustration at AI on the business exactly like that. By judging the tone "change or I'll tell the artists", it's very likely the person would try to incite them instead of just "telling" them.
  - thrance 16d ago
    It's not cancel culture to bad-mouth a business and refuse them your patronage. People are vocal about what they feel passionate about, and a world where they weren't or couldn't sounds hellish to me. How would society ever progress? We'd still have "whites only" restaurants in that world. Not saying that justifies all anger targeted at business owners, but a blanket "criticism bad" stance is a bit silly. You have to make an actual argument as to why you think the anti-AI crowd is misguided in this case.
jackb4040 16d ago
As a rule, small business owners (as well as HN's population of temporarily embarrassed tech workers) treats being asked to not take as much profit as possible like being stabbed with a knife

deleted 16d ago

[deleted]

Legend2440 16d ago

Oh, please. You know what they're threatening: an internet mob. That's not just "talking".

krapp 16d ago
It was literally just talking, though.

brandon272 16d ago

I think that issuing an ultimatum where if the person does not do what you want, that you will be sharing your concerns with likeminded people online, with the underlying implication being that the business owner will end up experiencing some kind of negative outcome from that, is absolutely a threat.

jlarocco 16d ago
Okay, but I (and I suspect a lot of people) really don't care if somebody is threatened in that way. If the business person doesn't want other people to know what they're doing then maybe they shouldn't do it. It's not worthy of a news article, IMO. If somebody threatens them with violence (which is what "threat" is usually implying) then that's a different thing entirely.
- fakedang 16d ago
  "It would be a pity if I were to tarnish jlarocco's reputation within my network. I even have his GitHub from his profile. I'll just talk shit about him to all the CTOs on the block and ensure he doesn't get a job again..." See how that works? That's why you should care. The so-called influencer-orienter culture has become a plague after social media. And these F&B businesses are the ones hit hardest - remember all those movies in the 90s and 00s about how some up and coming entrepreneur or chef had to win the approval of some hoity-toity food journalist? Also, rest assured, I'm not serious about badmouthing you or anyone here for that matter - just trying to illustrate a point.
  - jlarocco 16d ago
    Oh, I get it, but it only works if the "influencer" can actually influence a large enough group of customers, and my bet is that they can't. If it were me, I would have called their bluff and ignored them.
    - brandon272 16d ago
      In that analogy, you SHOULD assume the person is an influencer. In the case of this shop, we're talking about local retail. If you are a retail small business owner you have to assume that any customer can be an "influencer" and cause significant harm if they seek to trash your business online.
- brandon272 16d ago
  If I tell someone that I am going to take a coordinated effort to undermine their business and get customers to stop shopping there, potentially resulting in the demise of the business, the loss of their livelihood and ability to provide for themselves or their family, I cannot think of any reasonable person who would not categorize that as a threat. A threat by no means is limited to violence only. I am really disturbed by language minimizes concrete actions taken to cause harm. "I am not hurting your business I am just talking to my friends!"
  - 16d ago
mothzilla 16d ago
Exactly. Pure cancel culture. Just be humble to understand the world might not agree with your views and let it be. Less "this can't exist" and more of "this is not for me".
- jlarocco 16d ago
  Cancel culture or not, people are allowed to tell other people they know that something is happening, and those people can decide for themselves to patronize the business or not. To call it a threat is really exaggerating. The headline makes it sound like people are phoning in bomb threats and violence, which doesn't seem to be happening at all. Honestly, I think the business owner should have ignored these weak "threats" altogether. It doesn't have anything to do with coffee and it's unlikely they'll get any business because they use AI, so it can only hurt them.
  - jackb4040 16d ago
    If the Montgomery Bus Boycott happened today most Americans would call it cancel culture.
  - mothzilla 16d ago
    I get you think the word is too heavy but remember: it's a small business and bad press is a serious thing. It could be enough to shut down the place. Just see how afraid local shop owners are of Yelp. You get review bombed there and you have a serious problem. You don't know if these artists won't just unload their (just) frustration at AI on the business exactly like that. By judging the tone "change or I'll tell the artists", it's very likely the person would try to incite them instead of just "telling" them.
- thrance 16d ago
  It's not cancel culture to bad-mouth a business and refuse them your patronage. People are vocal about what they feel passionate about, and a world where they weren't or couldn't sounds hellish to me. How would society ever progress? We'd still have "whites only" restaurants in that world. Not saying that justifies all anger targeted at business owners, but a blanket "criticism bad" stance is a bit silly. You have to make an actual argument as to why you think the anti-AI crowd is misguided in this case.

jackb4040 16d ago

As a rule, small business owners (as well as HN's population of temporarily embarrassed tech workers) treats being asked to not take as much profit as possible like being stabbed with a knife