This article has existed in unlisted form for a while, but after attempting to handle my frustrations internally, I thought it appropriate to publish it widely. Keep in mind, this was written before a statement was made, and so it is out of date, but for those just made aware of the issue, I wanna show how NixCon used the information vacuum to their advantage, and how they applied spin, something I find highly problematic of a “community effort”¹.

In general, it seems to me moderation in official NixOS projects serve more as a HR department than a community protection effort.

NixCon EU 2023 and Anduril

If you're unaware, on September the 4th, the official NixOS account on chaos.social announced that NixCon was sponsored by Anduril². Anduril Industries, Inc. is a defense tech startup by “Trump’s Most Prominent Silicon Valley Supporters”³, Palmer Luckey. Yes, the Oculus Palmer Luckey.

Already by Sep 5th, they had edited the message: "following internal discussion and community feedback, we decided to drop the sponsor". But did the passionate community of the fediverse create such an uproar that NixOS had to retract? As we'll see, that's unlikely.

On the discourse discussion forum, September 5th saw the opening of a thread about the incident. By the 8th, it was not just closed but also hidden — a move that piqued my interest.

In the NixOS matrix channel #offtopic, a user came to vent their frustration. What became clear from that conversation was that there was no space left to discuss this. I personally suggested, quite firmly, that there should exist some space to discuss the issue. At the time, that fell for empty ears.

I was perturbed by their choice to hide the thread, viewing it as a way to sweep the issue under the rug. From my discussions with those defending the thread's concealment, their rationale, at its most generous, was to prevent harm. They felt targeted by an aggressive, unruly mob while trying to manage a conference.

However, I believe the situation is more nuanced.

I think this conflict avoidance is symptomatic of NixOS's broader cultural issues. Seeking answers, I posted on Reddit: "NixOS hides thread about military sponsors, promises to publish statement after NixCon". The majority of users leaned towards defending Anduril, but a crucial piece of information emerged.

Several key contributors later confirmed that the university had said it would cancel⁴. I had hoped the thread was hidden due to fears of conference cancellation. However, my concerns about reopening the thread were dismissed, even when the conference was over

What's going on?

In the NixCon matrix channel, after some tense exchanges, I achieved two things: a tentative statement release date of September 23rd (no promises they said) and the opening of a channel for Anduril discussions⁵.

The ensuing discussion was emotionally taxing. Some seemed to view me as a convenient target for their frustrations. A few later apologized for their behavior, but the experience was deeply hurtful. When I inquired about the statement on September 23rd, I hesitated, fearing a repeat of previous hostility. I asked, and now it's the 26th. They still haven't replied.

Conclusion

The discussion confirmed my suspicions: the Reddit post was accurate. The prevailing narrative that Anduril was dropped due to public outcry isn't entirely true. NixCon, and by extension NixOS hadn't taken a stance on associating with the weapons industry, or it's politically motivated founders; they were merely damage controlling.

In said thread, I tried to start a discussion about how incidents like that could be handled, specifically, I suggested transparency. I think perhaps now I know why there is such a hostility to transparency. I also have reasonable suspicions about why the draft is delayed, why the thread is locked and hidden, and why they're desperately trying to shut down discussion.

They don't wanna take a stand against weapons money, and they're trying to spin this as if they have. As if anything has changed. Right now, most people think that they removed Anduril "following internal discussion and community feedback", but frankly, that's a lie.

They removed Anduril only so the conference wouldn't be cancelled.

Footnotes