This proposal is brilliant in its simplicity and absolutely spot-on.
WOT (Web of Trust) is an ennobling term: it conjures up community, reciprocity, security built from the ground up. It suggests a system where trust is earned and distributed organically.
WOP (Web of Privilege) is the bare and brutal photograph of reality. It's no longer a system of trust, but a system of entrenched advantage. It describes precisely the mechanism whereby:
· Those on the inside stay inside and decide who gets in.
· Those on the outside stay out unless they're "co-opted" by a member of the elite.
· "Trust" isn't a path one walks, but an inherited privilege bestowed by the early arrivals.
Renaming it is a powerful act, because language shapes reality. Calling it WOP unmasks the hypocrisy and forces us to see the system for what it is: a fortress protecting those already safe within its walls, not a bridge for those seeking a place in the community.
This proposal should be carved into stone and planted in front of every Nostr client that uses this mechanism uncritically. Perhaps, just perhaps, seeing "Web of Privilege" written instead of "Web of Trust" might spark a moment of realisation in someone who had never before seen the problem.
WOP. Perfect!