Is that you start befriending them by seeing the things they yell out into the void. And then you follow them to hear some more of the things they say into the void. So if they change the things they yell about or they yell about things you don't like, or have opinions you don't agree with, you'll have them on your dashboard anyway. And if you don't follow them or they don't follow you, you'll both get swept away by the algorithm and might not find each other again.
(I suppose there are rare cases where you don't follow them because you don't like the things they post but still know them and their habits and talk to them. Hi, that one guy I don't follow on birdsite but enjoy seeing pop around)
If you're friends IRL you'll only get to see the face they put forward for you. It's like a whole thing to not want you IRL acquaintances to find your social media. You don't get to hear their every thoughts broadcasted.
It's like a narrow tightrope to walk on. If you don't like the opinions of a stranger you can just mute or block and move on. That's how you can make social media experiences bearable. If you don't like the opinion of someone you consider a friend, or at least someone you like having conversations with, muting feels excessive. How to put them at an arm's length (or any length that's comfortable), without cutting the tether entirely?
"Google Circles" well shit.
