I support Andrew Torba’s decision to make media-posting a paid-feature on Gab.
In the ever-evolving landscape of the digital world, recent decisions by platforms like Gab to implement paywalls for media posting have sparked intriguing discussions. While some may initially resist the notion of paying for what was once freely accessible, it prompts a deeper examination of the dynamics of value exchange in our digital age.
It's a prevalent sentiment that in the digital realm, everything should be free. We've grown accustomed to the idea that content, services, and skills should be readily available without cost. However, this perspective overlooks the considerable effort, time, and resources invested in creating and maintaining these offerings.
The introduction of nominal fees for access to certain platforms, such as the Diagolon chat, has highlighted a fascinating shift in behavior. Suddenly, with a small monetary barrier, the landscape transformed – spammy, low-effort content dwindled, replaced by more meaningful discourse and engagement.
This phenomenon resonates with my own experiences. I undertook the challenge of building my own website, acquiring the necessary skills along the way. It was a journey of personal growth and learning, and now, I offer my expertise as a service. However, it's disheartening to witness a reluctance among others to invest in themselves or their endeavors.
There's a notable incongruity among those who claim allegiance to certain ideologies yet behave in ways that contradict them. It's easy to espouse beliefs in the principles of capitalism or nationalism, but actions speak louder than words. Whether one chooses to support platforms and creators financially or not, it's a reflection of individual priorities and values. Now I’m not so foolish as to believe these online spaces are where these ideologies will truly exist. While actual change happens offline, and away from these spaces, online digital platforms do act as a means of connectivity to one audience.
I do believe that social media has evolved into a sort of “idol worship” over these years. People value their online “shadow self” more highly than that of their own being. It is, in my view, a successful satanic inversion of reality. The behavior people exhibit online often doesn’t reflect who they are in real life. The online space allows their own demons to run free.
In fact I would argue that the behavioral patterns exhibited by people online by corporatist tactics have allowed for a mass well-poisoning of minds. Showing some person that a certain type of behavior is preferred to others has become hyper-influencing causing those with less ability to resist this propaganda to go further than intended: instead of disagreement we have death threats, instead of choosing to spend your money elsewhere we have doxxing. The behavior introduced by “free-range-bot-armies” managed by deranged sycophants has led to the crumbling of the social contract. Introducing a price to curb thess behaviours is long overdue.
It all costs money, so why do you think you’re so important than you should get to do it for free?
Do you know how to put those pictures of your overpriced hipster-restaurant dinner online without an app doing it for you? No? Are you willing to pay for the privilege? Well then just watch other people do it.
We are long past the “need” to have access to a “potential online community of people you’ve never met, likely will never meet, but just might in case something you make goes viral…” but you still can: you just have to pay for it. Long-term I can see the quality of people online being distributed in a direct correlation to the amount they’re willing to pay for the privilege of being there.
Gab's decision to implement paywalls for media posting isn't merely a restriction; it's a reevaluation of value in the digital economy. Users are presented with a choice: pay for the convenience of using existing platforms or invest in building their own digital presence. Either way, there's a cost involved – not just in terms of money, but in recognizing and respecting the effort and resources required to maintain digital spaces.