![]() ![]() ![]() There are lots of people chatting about politics, current events, and obscure shared interests.īut compared with regular platforms, Scuttlebutt has some radically different qualities. Users create a profile, post content, and like and comment on others’ posts. On the surface, Scuttlebutt looks quite similar to Facebook. Scuttlebutt is an example of alternative social media platforms, which try to keep the best bits of popular places like Facebook and Twitter while improving on their downsides. However, it’s hard to imagine alternatives to an internet dominated by private companies – they are such a ubiquitous and powerful part of our online lives. There’s increasing interest in regulating these companies and the markets in which they operate, including from the Australian government. By putting corporate interests ahead of user wellbeing and society at large, they are key contributors to misinformation, privacy violations, and online harassment and abuse. One factor underpinning many of these problems is the huge influence that a handful of companies, such as Meta and Google, have over the internet. The internet is fraught with serious issues regulators are struggling to tackle. By letting ordinary people connect across vast distances, it would help us become more empathetic and egalitarian. In the 1990s, many thought the internet would make the world a better place. The internet wasn’t supposed to be like this We’ve just published research that looks at one alternative – a social network called Scuttlebutt, which provides an example of a platform that puts people before profit. But while there’s a growing appetite for a new, better kind of internet, it’s hard to imagine what that might look like. ![]() It’s the latest example of growing efforts to regulate the handful of companies with enormous influence over the internet. I'll try those next time, for sure.Last week, the US government released six principles for reforming Big Tech. The final two in Fidanza's sandwich six-pack feature Smoked Ham and Tonnato, and Schnitzel with Slaw. The Meatball is served warm, and on ciabatta, and is spicier than you expect it to be, balanced by the sharp bite of some good pecorino. There's an Italian Hero-inspired sandwich here too and, as you can imagine, it's a stunner, packed with salami, coppa, mortadella, and mozzarella, punctuated with roasted peppers, tapenade, a mess of greens, and a splash of oil and vinegar. The Roast Pork, made with pig's knuckles on the day I ate it, held its own under an onslaught of bitter broccoli rabe, sharp provolone, fiery chili, and, again, a thick glob of mayonnaise. Herbs, capers, and some Parmigiano round out the broad flavor palate of this beauty. The bread tastes great, adds a nice craggy texture, and serves as a sponge to soak up, in this case, a monstrous slather of mayo. Each one costs $14 and provides ample sustenance for a complete meal.įor example, there's the magnificent Roast Beef which, like all but one of the offerings here, comes on Fidanza's famous focaccia. On the menu hanging over the counter, they're listed by number, but you can order by primary ingredient as well. I ate four of Fidanza's half dozen creations over the weekend, and all were delicious top quality sandwiches. It's not exactly Saltie 2.0-the only seating is outside on a plank, there's no Scuttlebutt, no vegetarian options and, the biggest hole as far as I'm concerned, there are no cookies-but it still totally kicks ass. The location makes total sense, both because of all the meaty resources readily available to the sandwich inventor, and because Fidanza worked within the Tarlow empire for many years before opening Saltie. Well, now Fidanza is back, and in Wiliamsburg, with six brand new sandwiches available only at Marlow and Daughters, Andrew Tarlow's "whole animal" deli and butcher shop at the western end of Broadway. Its absence still stings, even two years later, especially whenever I'm in Williamsburg trying to figure out a food plan. ![]() I love the fact that this amazingly good and unabashedly unique little cafe existed at all, and I ate there as often as I possibly could, feeling happy and satisfied every single time. Saltie, Caroline Fidanza's Williamsburg sandwich shop masterpiece that had a glorious eight-year run on Metropolitan Avenue before shutting down in 2017, is a closure that still hurts. Restaurants and bars come and go at a staggering rate in this town, and while we might mourn the loss of way-too-many spots, some closures hit a little harder than others. ![]()
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