WallStreetBets says Twitter was selling verifications. They would refuse to verify you, then demand $15,000.
(media.kotakuinaction2.win)
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Welcome to an example of the 'sunken cost fallacy'. They paid thousands for a little badge under the table to feel like they were part of an exclusive club and are salty when a legitimate guy buys the platform and just goes "Yeah give me $8 and you get the badge".
It's like those guys who bought Fallout 76 and Battlefield 2042 at launch got salty when people got it later at massive discount or even free when they paid more for an essentially shit product at that point.
But also thought extortion. If you paid $15k there's no way you're risking losing that by saying anything against the party line even in a little niche you really care and know about.
If this was actual Twitter policy I bet it was more designed to keep popular people in line than to raise money.
I agree but it also links into a sunken cost fallacy, just a political evolution on it.
Remember all those times someone bought a bad game and went "I'm having fun with it, stop trying to hate it because it's popular to bash it" now compare it to "just because he seems to be speaking non coherently isn't a reason to not support him, he's still better than your side". It's way worse as a bad game just wastes your time, a bad government wastes your life.
I think there's that, but there is an actual exclusivity at that price which is serious. An American Express Platinum card is $650 a year in an annual fee. It's not really there regarding cost, they are just saying that there are very specific people who are really big spenders that they want to buy the card. And a big annual fee keeps low spending poors out of an exclusive club.
Additionally, WSB is fairly based, so I'd guess his fee was inherently higher because of his status as a thought terrorist.
It's a common phenomenon. You see that with machine gun collectors. They're some of the biggest opponents to repealing the Hughes amendment. If repealed, their $15,000 machine guns would drop to $1,500. They just don't want to see their "investment" disappearing.
The fuck, just looked it up, if they took their stick out their ass and helped repeal it, screw investment you might get more innovation!
More demand usually leads to more competition and that leads to people trying new things to get an edge.
Try "Collectors" of anything.
Most people collect shit because of the $$$ which is a purely 'merchant' thought process and neglects the main point of collection, self satisfaction.
The 'fallacy' is the internal thinking of the people who spent the money and would rather keep the under table bribes and ideological corruption than open it up for a small charge.
The sunk cost has already taken place, them trying to cry and wail over $8 for a badge is their over-investment in a verification.
This isn't a dig at you but would you assert that these blue checkmarks retain access to a 'rational mind'?
It's one thing to deny the peasants the finest silks and spices, the most advanced weapons, the best healthcare. They're whining and sulking over a blue symbol next to their username, their entire mind is a fallacy.
Verification changed from "I am this person" to "I am an approved member of the cheka in good standing with the Party." I forget which year they started doing this, twitter would take peoples' verified status away if they posted wrongthink. They did this to everyone they could get away with doing it to, including I think candidates for office in some instances.
January 2016, they unverified Milo Yiannopoulous.
That was the moment checkmarks blatantly ceased being identity verification, and became marks of approval.
I believe it started with Milo getting his checkmark taken off him, did it not?
Criticism of free speech is extremely offensive hate speech, and as we all know, hate speech isn't free speech anyway.
A lot of what the doge is saying could be true, if it were ever used for its intended purpose. Besides the retarded "safety over freedom" part, a paid system is not going to help any of the "problems" with it.
But the problem is the checkmark long since stopped being "this is the literal person they are claiming to be" and that's twitter's fault. He is just monetizing it.
Honestly, if I were him I'd just wipe the slate and make everyone re-verify (like most systems do at times to make sure its actually still you), because then it would call their bluff and make them decide on their little blue badge versus giving Big Papa Muskie their personal information.
"Safety is more important than free speech."
Nothing this guy says is worth listening to after that profound nugget of authoritarianism.
I think that guy needs even more safety. He should be permanently banned from all social media so he'll be perfectly safe from any of the mean people saying mean things he doesn't like to read.
you don't deserve safety.
The remarks about changes killing a platform and Digg(when's the last time you heard that name, huh?) are interesting. If all that comes of this whole thing is that Twitter dies, I'll consider it a net positive.
https://archive.ph/ESEdY
I really want a list of narcissistic nut jobs that paid $15,000 for an low res mass of pixels next to their made up twatter handle.
Name and shame, Elon!!