Tumblr vs. 4chan - a recap of internet history

I haven’t been particularly active on Tumblr lately, so the news took me by surprise, but it seems Tumblr has once again attempted to stir up the hornet’s nest and “raid” 4chan. Naturally, the backlash was a million times more effective. But this whole deal makes me wonder just how many of the people that participated in it were around 4 years ago, and also makes me feel a little nostalgic, considering how I ended up on Tumblr to begin with.

4 (well, actually 3 and a half) years ago, Tumblr, at the time populated by relatively harmless hipsters and fandom blogs instead of all the vomit-inducing SJ/feminist bullshit, got the bright idea that they should assert themselves as a community to be reckoned with by raiding the Final Boss of the Internet, /b/. And unlike this time, back then, they actually gave it a decent shot; for a day or two, Tumblr was a legitimate nuisance for 4chan. Except /b/ doesn’t like cocky wannabes trying to match their reputation, so the retaliation was swift and cruel, far more so than it is now. You see, up till now, you’ve only seen the first, and by far least punishing wave of raid strategies. Back then, it was no holds barred tech warfare: blog-deleting worms, undeleteable auto-reblogged posts proclaiming /b/’s victory, shit like that.

But then, in a surprising twist, the vengeful hivemind stopped. One thread that started as raid planning took a turn when someone pointed out how alike the two sides are, culminating a now-legendary post:

And suddenly, the majority of the “army” opted to form an alliance with Tumblr. Which is how I ended up here to begin with.

So much for history. Let’s look at the current war now.

As you can see, back then, Tumblr was a lot more like /b/: rowdy, perhaps foolhardy daredevils of their own right. Which is what brought the two sides together. But now? Tumblr has become the complete antithet of it. It’s become the functional equivalent of a theocracy, where the ruling ideology is enforced to the point of splitting hairs, and any detractors are treated with all the cruelty the community can muster. So this time, a peaceful outcome is night impossible.  And when the gloves come off, Tumblr will stand NO FUCKING CHANCE against /b/… fuck it, against us. I have no reason to deny that I won’t for a moment hesitate to side with /b/ in this matter. Old allegiances die hard, you could say.

However, you can consider this a piece of advice: trying to counter-spam /b/ accomplishes nothing. Do you really have such a grandiose view of Anonymous, do you really think we’re such a manifestation of evil that cute pictures harm us, like sunlight harms a vampire? Such magical thinking won’t do you any good. /b/ has always been one thing and one thing only: a honest look at humanity, with all its twisted, savage reality. /b/tards are not monsters, not creatures born of evil; they’re human. And to you, they’re a mirror.

Tumblr, you hide your own cruelty beneath a mask of righteousness, but you treat your opposition every bit as cruel as I’ve seen /b/rothers treat ours. You are not the slightest bit better, and now you’re facing down an enemy that has all the vicious rage you hold, but with far more resources and skills to act upon it.

I eagerly await to see what becomes of this.