Clearly, Matt isn't going to listen to reason. And given that he's basically in charge of WordPress.org, Automattic, and WP as a whole with zero oversight or anyone to pull him back, this situation isn't likely to change (and probably only get worse).
So how do hit back? Contact his investors in Automattic – tell them to reign his shit in.
Key Investors, as listed on Automattic's site: Tiger Global Management, Salesforce Ventures, Insight Venture Partners, ICONIQ Capital, True Ventures, Wellington Management, BlackRock, Alta Park Capital, Addition, Schonfeld, New York Times Company.
“Hello, BlackRock?”
“Yes, good afternoon. I have an ethics complaint.”
“No, it’s not about big pharma.”
“No, not your real estate portfolio either.”
“No this isn’t about the defense industry, I want you to fire Matt Mullenweg from WordPress.”
“Yes, I’ll hold..”
I was told that WP Engine is a cancer because it’s backed by a private equity firm. But just look at how many private equity firms back Automattic!
To tack on to this post, start tagging some of these companies on X.
With age, you reach a certain level of maturity and see the world for what it is.
The rich and powerful have always used the weak minded to do their bidding. They use religion and policies to keep the little guy always fighting another little guy while they laugh at us.
I promise you, this too shall pass.
That is why I have not voted in a single election in 30 years, because they are birds of the same feather and they are birds of the same prey.
One day, you will see the light.
That’s a great idea. Selfishly I hope this is a catalyst for a strong WordPress fork.
I may be an outlier but I have never been happy with Gutenberg or being forced into it.
Woocommerce has been stunted by gutenberg and their rebranded stripe partnership was super low effort.
I feel like I have already built my last WP project. I had a very similar realization with Magento.
Oh well.. I will miss PHP.
Investors are not interested if it is right or wrong, they want returns on their investment. You can cry them a river they won’t move unless it affects their money and WordPress currently holds “The stick of truth” and as per the great wizards from South Park “The one who has the stick is the ruler of the world”.
A better way to hit back would be to inform people about all this and ask them to move away from all the services provided by them.
First off eff tfg. Bron of the Blackwater always said “there’s no cure for being a c*nt.”
Okay, that said I think writing to investors about this is a lever to pull.
I believe sending letters to the offices of your local and state officials are another good lever to pull. I’m starting with that one today.
Time for Forkpress?
SJWs, just what this insane drama needed…
It would be more productive to advocate for open community discussions within WordPress to address concerns
You people are unhinged. WPE doesn’t need your help, they’re a $400 million company. Get a grip, all of you.
Matt has their votes already.
From Theo’s interview with Matt,
“We have great investors.. I vote 84% of the shares with proxy agreements.. Every share that has traded hands since 2012 maybe I have a voting proxy for.”
[https://youtu.be/OUJgahHjAKU?t=5912](https://youtu.be/OUJgahHjAKU?t=5912)
I mean, he did threaten to go to Silver Lake and claim Heather was gonna jump ship to Automattic. And he was making that up…his recent behavior is quite provable.
Turnabout is fair play, I think.
Here’s the board of directors at Automattic, they’re the ones everyone needs to contact.
[https://automattic.com/board/](https://automattic.com/board/)
WPE should create a fork and integrate ACF Pro. They have the capital for it and it seems like the support as well. The fork can use the .org plugin mirror they’re already using. If there’s one thing WordPress needs more of is competition. I for one would like to see more application support in WordPress core. The last few years have just been blogging support with the new editor.
I’m sure right now at this moment a group of developers are working on a replacement for WP. It’s a niche opportunity at this moment.
Actually we don’t. We should have the community decide, not just you or a small minority loud minority % of the community.
Investors will not care unless it affects their bottom line. And if Matt were smart, he would have structured the investment deals to still maintain control of Automattic; like Zuckerberg did with FB.
They’re just going to be happy he’s doing what they said to do
None of his investors will care. This is why he feels empowered to act this way and do what he’s doing because he believes he can do it without any issues. Learn other CMSs, stop going to WordCamps and giving them your money or sending clients to them, stop giving them your time and efforts if you feel he is an empty vessel. I use the WP CMS but that’s where it begins and ends and will study other CMSs as soon as time avails. In my opinion, he’s out of control and is proudly thumbing his nose at everyone.
One of the biggest things we can do is move yours and/or any clients’ websites off of [wordpress.com](http://wordpress.com) hosting plans…
Had anyone thought that maybe the investors are behind this? Just because the guy is the mouthpiece and wants it, doesn’t mean that the investors aren’t there talking him through their wishes too
I’d like to see the engagement metrics for this subreddit before and after Matt’s meltdown. I’d also be interested to see what is the ratio of posts about this particular topic compared to posts asking at least semi-legitimate questions about WordPress itself.
I agree Matt is crazy. I agree he is damaging to the brand. I agree that it is potentially dangerous to remain in a situation where one guy can, in a fit of pique, disrupt your business. I just can’t help thinking at this point that the constant posts are mental masturbation by both sides.
Why persist in using the most poorly designed CMS with crappy code?
Wouldn’t this be the ideal time to change creameries and use real professional tools?
At worst, if this sounded the death knell for WordPress, wouldn’t that be a blessing in disguise? It would move a large community towards more quality products and allow them to develop… Everyone would be a winner
Fork WordPress
Slightly out of the loop … but isn’t WordPress governed by the FSF?
The OP u/Lady_broach_Tuarach has never posted or commented on anything related to WordPress before today.