#im getting that cash money but at what cost

[magnoliamyrrh]

this blog has just temporary turned into me talking abt work. I Do Not Like This

[castielafflicted]

what should i do with the $1.39 in my bank account im open to suggestions

[prozach27]

.

[guinevereslancelot]

so proud of myself for putting a big part of my last paycheck in my savings like an adult but now im gonna spend all my savings like an idiot 😵‍💫

[swagging-back-to]

thinking about how i went to dominos with my sistsr and she got a large and small pizza with multiple toppings for like $8 and i got a SMALLL gluten free VEGETABLE pizza with no cheese and it ended up being $22 fucking dollars.

and then they gaveme a cheese pizza. so i couldnt even eat it. and they were closing when we left.

[discworldwitches]

[id: screenshot of a tiktok of a woman with the text: while you’re struggling to pay your rent this month I just want you to remember that israel gets subsidized housing, subsidized groceries, free healthcare, updated infrastructure because the USA and Germany has given them multi billion dollars in citizen tax money.]

this is a dangerous narrative. the “im struggling to pay my rent because of my taxes and my taxes go to subsidize cushy lives in israel” is dangerous and a short logical leap from “jews are stealing our hard earned money. the working class and poor are oppressed by jews.”

and that’s not how the money works, much of it goes towards the military and “aid packages” represent value not liquid cash (so weapons sent are represented in $$$ form.) and the state operates the way above bc ben gurion & co were socialists. plus, as far as i know, things are relatively similar to the uk with high costs of living but subsidized housing, public healthcare etc.

money from germany often does not go whatsoever into the pockets of israeli holocaust survivours (which is what it’s desiginated for as holocaust reparations (and bc companies that significantly contribute to the german GDP collaborated with nazis/used the labour of enslaved jews) ) (NOTE: it's military aid; money to compensate holocaust victims and survivors ended in 2018, which as i mentioned, did not go into individuals pockets) let alone israelis who are not survivours. many holocaust survivours living there live in poverty. there are literally videos of some picking through refuse produce.

it’s deeply heinous that palestinian american & palestinian german taxes go in part towards the weapons used to genocide palestinians including their own families. OP's post is not about that. she is not acknowledging that or really any connection between the USA and the occupation forces. instead OP is making it sound like israelis live comfortable lives with little expenditures off of the backs of american workers which is a few steps away from protocols shit at best. the idea that jews are enslaving or profitting off on those who are not jewish, especially the working class & poor, is textbook antisemitic conspiracy.

[qqueenofhades]

Hwy dod we even need to send more money to Ukraine tho like we’ve already supported them plenty! But let Europe pull their weight and we can go back to spending that money on American policies

Do you read like, any news outside Tumblr, any Ukrainian perspectives, any basic analyses of the conflict, any rationale from Democrats or Congress, or anything? Because, in brief:

Ukrainians are currently facing a full-scale genocide. It has been going on for over a year and Russian military leadership has every plan to continue until fruition. If they stop resisting, there will be no more Ukraine or Ukrainians. So all the "appeasers" or "realists" insisting that Ukraine should "give up land for peace" (which notably worked so well with Czechoslovakia and Hitler in 1938) are basically deciding that it's fine to let the genocide be carried out, if it's even minorly inconvenient for us. Putin and cronies have repeatedly stated that if they are successful in taking Ukraine, they will go further. This is the exact scenario that leads to the "escalation" and/or WWIII that various people keep wringing their hands over. It is far more just and safe for Ukraine to be supported now and to stop that before it gets even worse.

America is not actually giving over buckets of black cash, regardless of what various bad-faith takes claim. They are handing over weapons valued at various amounts of money, along with some financial and budgetary aid. A lot of these weapons are older and would cost more to decommission than they cost to give to a sovereign democracy fighting for its life against an imperialist autocratic neighbor. This is some tiny amount like 5% (if that) of America's bloated military budget. And again: it's actual weapons valued at a certain dollar amount. These cannot be spent on American domestic policies.

The idea that helping Ukraine is directly coming out of our own pockets or preventing us from spending as needed on our own needs is propaganda. It is not good to repeat it.

I wrote this post the other day about why Putin is trying so hard to break American/Western support for Ukraine, and why the hard-right MAGA has enabled him in it. Putin's Russia is the motivating nexus, coordination, and funding center for Russian/European/American far-right theocratic fascism. This whole "America Only" is the exact rationale that appeals to said far-right domestic fascists and gives Putin and other imperial expansionist kleptocrats the justification to just throw away post-WWII international order and declare that any larger and more powerful state can systematically eradicate any neighboring country, claim its territory, destroy its government, kill its people, and get away with it. Because why would they stop, if there aren't any consequences and they are rewarded for it?

Putin has repeatedly interfered in American elections to help Trump and the Republicans. That should tell you something about who he sees as most favorable to his interests and what he would do again if allowed to emerge victorious.

Europe IS actually pulling its weight! They just brought all 27 defense ministers to Kyiv, they have been working on Ukraine's accession talks, they have committed all types of weapons (including the long-range missiles that the US still won't clearly authorize), they've committed a new tranche of 5 billion euros in long-term assistance, etc. But the whole "we should pull out of NATO and leave Europe to fend for itself" was a key isolationist and xenophobic Trump idea. We can see what that led to.

American aid is vital to Ukraine's continued existence as a sovereign country, period, and it is in American interests to continue to provide it as agreed upon. Not least because such an egregious betrayal of a democratic ally would empower the fascists of the world, both Russian and American, and because as noted, if this conflict was not stopped and got bigger, it would then involve American troops. It is a moral, democratic, political, and ethical imperative. This is not a difficult call or a complicated situation, regardless of what the Online Leftist tankies and the MAGA-world nutcases (because horseshoe theory) want you to think.

Слава Україні.

The end.

[l-na]

so we finally got affordable housing buuuutttt

the company my caseworker is hired by is not able to help with out-of-state costs (even though we're just moving a few miles!?!?) so we're gonna have to fit the entire moving bill.

hi im luna. im a blasian trans physically disabled schizoeffective bipolar cfs-having cane user. if youve been following me for a while, you know ive been battling for almost 5 years to get into housing i can afford as multiply-disabled person, since holding down a job is fucking impossible for me.

i just recently got denied disability, which is a big hit to my overall finances. im so close to having what i need, and this move takes more than $1000 away from our current monthly bill. it'd be such a load off my shoulders.

please help me? this move is so important to me, and ive been stretching my finances to make this shit work. (yes im still in a legal battle over my stuff getting destroyed, that's a work in progress that'll probably take another half a year to get solved)

my last post lost steam so HERE

CASH APP PREFERRED! if you use paypal please let them know it's "for luna", because that paypal is my boyfriends (i got banned from paypal for being trans and using my preferred name)

boost if you can! thanks! don't tag as d0n@.t10n or anything else related to that, please.

[wondermentishere]

maybe ive been trying to force myself into doing shit im really not all that passionate about. ive always gone thru stints of intensely dedicating my life to specific practices/activities then dropped it like a potato cause i got tired of it. i seriously admire people who can dedicate their lives to doing the same thing over and over again but me... i enjoy the experience then im ready to move on.

i be feeling guilty about wanting to move on. its not a reflection of the value of the art; im just ready something else. then i get caught in a limbo of not doing shit cause trying new things cost money and ive been struggling for cash my whole adulthood. then i also feel like damn.. im just abandoning what use to mean so much to me. i get so frustrated like why.... am i not investing my time?? i love the idea of being a great piano player but in reality i dont really like playing. it kinda pisses me off and bores me, even tho i think its a beautiful instrument. ive been convinced this just a sign of depression and i need to push myself harder to be disciplined but maybe... maybe im just over it and refuse to accept it.

what i do feel a pull towards right now is pottery and jiu jitsu. 2d cartooning and photography would so tight to get into as well. im gonna focus on that and do what i want to without holding on expectations i have for myself. need to forget disappointing/wanting to appease others as well. just need to do what EYE want

oh yeah and i also want my guitars back

[montimer]

Joker x reader

Reader works at a store

gn!reader, could be any joker ig

Summary: the store is getting robbed by the joker but as tired as you are, you just give the money to him. (Based on the ep 'jokers millions' cuz he needs cash)

____________________________

It was pretty late. A few customers were walking around the store. You just quietly stood behind the register, waiting for your shift to end.

And that is when you heard a gunshot, then glass breaking. Two tall man entered the store, they had clown make up on and wore black clothing.

They didn't move, not until another men came in. He was in purple, wearing a hat, making half of his face covered in a shadow. "Alright boys, lets make this quick" he snapped his fingers ordering them.

He then looked around and his eyes landed on you. Or atleast that two dots that were seeable.

You felt so tired, stressed and exhausted, you just waited for something to happen.

He made his way towards you in fast steps. Only when he got closer did you realize that the man infront of you was no other than The Joker himself.

You noticed his flower and that smile you recognize on posters.

He raised his gun at you demanding money. You just nodded at him as you opened the register. "Okay okay, lower that thing man"

You handed him the cash that was in there, about...50 bucks. He almost looked surprised. Maybe cuz you actually listened with out crying for your life. Or maybe cuz you seemed unimpressed? Well it is gotham after all.

Not that you weren't afraid at the moment.

"Ah..good choice. You're a smart one"

He put his gun and the money in his pocket. He looked back up at you.

"Happen to know the code for the safe?"

You giggled at him. He made a surprised face once again, you had to hold back from laughing.

"Ya really think this poor store has a safe? Only the boss has more money on him. And he went home like two hours ago. Sorry"

"Huh, he left?!"

"Yeah..he always does that. He leaves the store for us to close. About that..my shift ends in 20 minutes and i don't wanna deal with that" you point at the broken windows.

He looks back at you.

"Aren't you afraid?"

"Well its not my fault that its broken-"

"No, i mean. Aren't you afraid of me? I mean do you even know who ya talking to?"

"The charming prince of crime. The Joker, yeah yeah i know.. i heard about you"

The word charming made him smile.

"You know what sweets, i like ya! You aren't like the others. Oh and by the way. The gun wasn't loaded"

You blink in surprise and he just laughed.

"Low on bullets that is.. but you're very cooperative. I like that." He put his hands up picturing you.

"Well gotta fly before batboy and birdie comes looking for me. Wish i could steal more of your time."

You look at your clock. Your shift has ended. Plus you survived an encounter with a villain. But at what cost.

"Heres my card. Er, and your name sweet?"

"..Y/n..Y/n L/n.."

"I'll keep that in my memory"

He petted your head, he then waved and whistled for his hench men. They left the store running as you tried to keep yourself together.

'Maybe i should have gave him a fake name, would he have been mad then?' You took a look at the card he gave you. It was a normal poker card. A joker card.

'Mmm. Im just gonna go home and deal with this later'

Little did you know you just made this crazy clown interested in you.

[vorenado-m]

happy disability pride month! please consider helping me take back my life as a disabled person!

the TL;DR is that for the last 3 months i have had an absolutely soul-sucking miserable minimum wage retail job that, due to the way scheduling works (and the app being broken as fuck) has prevented me from having access to literally any of the life-saving mental health/medical care i need as a disabled person.

my disability is best managed through a combination of medication, therapy, and casework-- not a single one of which i have had since march! :) contextually, up until i got this job, i took three daily medications and had casework once a week and therapy once or sometimes twice a week. these services are offered at an affordable cost to me through a local organization that is threatening to close my case due to lack of participation.

ill make another, more detailed post later with some of the services i can offer for money (i draw! i code! i write!) but until then here is a code you can scan if you have a few dollars to spare:

there are more details beneath the cut (idk about you guys but im kinda nosy so i wrote some more stuff in case anyone else is also nosy) but thats the gist of it. you can also always ask for details. i dont have a therapist right now so it might feel good to say things.

my plan is as follows: i would like to take the month of july more or less "off" from work to get my affairs in order, starting with scheduling appointments for therapy and casework and getting back on my meds. i am actively looking for a job, but i would like the ability to be somewhat picky instead of applying everywhere i think might have me for the sake of having money coming in to pay rent.

for the last two years i have made less than $800/mo and i can survive on roughly $600-$650 a month. my july rent ($550) is paid and my august rent (at least $500) is most likely also squared away, through a combination of some cash i was hoarding, a previous donation, my last expected paychecks from my current job, and my brother generously offering to cover whatever is left over. the extra $100ish is for roughly a months supply of the food that is part of my daily routine that i get cranky without (i have tea every morning, for instance.)

i have a fantastic roommate who is not struggling as much financially who will do everything in her power to make sure i have access to staple foods (rice, eggs, etc) so i really just need to buy the things only i consume (kimchi, milk, etc.) there is a food bank i go to, so i am not worried about food, but i can only go to it once per month. we have a barter system where i trade her the things i dont want from the food bank and she buys me things i will eat; alternatively, i sometimes give her things i get from the food bank (eg meat) that she turns into meals for both of us.

i live independently/"alone" with roommates and do not have support from my family pretty much at all. they have never been particularly useful for emotional support and have openly denied me financial support since i was a teenager. moving in with them/getting help from them/talking to them is not an option.

i have emailed my caseworker at the mental health organization i work with as well as my caseworker with the disability vocational program i work with to help me find a new job that is "back of house" and requires less customer interaction. i did this over the weekend, so i expect to hear back from them sometime this week. in the meantime, i am searching for jobs on my own in places like indeed, jobhat, careerbuilder, etc. as well as checking company websites of places like chain grocery stores to see what is available in my area.

my job pool is a bit limited due to the fact that i cannot drive (due to both my disability and the medication im supposed to be taking for it) but i am very well-versed at taking the bus, which is free. getting to and from work is not a concern for me; it is being able to do the job without being driven to the edge of a mental breakdown that is the problem.

the disability vocational program is my ticket out of poverty! last month i had a follow-up evaluation (i had to call out of work for it, but frankly i was at the end of my rope then too) where they approved my career goals as a web developer and we are in the process of deciding what my next steps are! the program will likely (depending on what route i take) help pay for vocational training, too, but i obviously have to pay rent while in training. which i think i can do if i have a job that doesnt make me want to die.

i have some other things that make my life a bit harder (im mixed race, i am nonbinary + gay, etc) but i would say those things dont really impact my ability to get a job as much as the disability does LOL which is why i did not feature them prominently in this post. like, the reason i cant get a job isnt because people dont want to hire me because i have blue hair and pronouns, its because im obviously disabled.

if you have any other questions, no matter how intrusive you think they might be, feel free to send a DM or an ask, and i will try to answer.

[quietwingsinthesky]

im inviting you right now with me to imagine a show where instead of being like the first season of spn where sam and dean want to find their dad at any cost, the first season of this hypothetical claire novak show is about her trying to find literally any possible way for castiel (and the winchesters) to not be able to track her down “for her own good”. claire novak who has to ditch her own style to change her hair and clothes and use a new fake name at every motel just in case the winchesters come trailing behind her. claire who scrounges up enough money for an enochian tattoo but doesn’t have the resources to know the correct translation to keep angels away, so when she has to fix what’s inked into her skin later, she doesn’t have the cash for it and has to carve out the corrections herself with a knife. claire who gets dragged into the hunting community out of necessity because there’s a lot of people who don’t like the winchesters for all the shit they keep pulling and who will help her dodge them. and just as many who will try to take advantage of her, or maybe worse, just as many who get guilty later (or opportunistic for a quick buck) and tell the winchesters where she’s going.

the thing that killed your father is hunting you down because it thinks it loves you and it wants to save you.

[maddestmewmew]

me: (spits out blood) give it up Evil British Scientist! ill never talk!

the scientist who is making me a little horny: is that roit...henchbloke...show him listings of merchendise he wants sooso bad and theyre being sold for really cheap compared to how much theyd ususally cost but theyre juuuust out of his price range...

me: NOOOOO!!!!!!!!! THAT FIGURE IS SLIGHTLY HARD TO GET AND BEING SOLD FOR ONLY 50 DOLLARS BUT I AM A TEENAGER WHO ONLY GETS MONEY WHEN MY GRANDMOTHER GIVES ME CASH BECAUSE SHE DOESNT KNOW WHAT IM INTO!!!!! AND THAT ONLY HAPPENS 4 MONTHS AFTER CHRISTMAS!!!!!!!!!!!!

person whos about to watch i saw the tv glow and have their shit rocked: idk life just feels so bleak yk. like nothings wrong its just like. is this all there is to adulthood? it just feels like somethings off idk ://

[angelbxxy]

Hey y’all idk how this works I’ve never been struggling this hard before. My two daughters lost their dad my fiancé a week ago from a heart problem we didn’t know he had. It was sudden and now I have to plan a funeral alone. I never imagined that he would be gone we were just talking about getting a life insurance policy like a month ago but never did it. I already have our two daughters I gotta take care of on 1 income now I don’t know how I’m gonna pull this funeral off of anyone can help us send him up the right way plz consider donating 🥺😭❤️

Cashapp $prettymom18

January 15th 2023🚨⏰⚰️

Update!!!!!

Still waiting on donätîons I currently only have $250(I took out a loan that’s all I was approved for)/$3,400(cost of funeral service and funeral home plus casket. The $3,400 DOES NOT INCLUDE THE BURIAL 🪦🥺😭⚰️😣♥️

Please help us if you are able and I would appreciate it if you can not help us financially, a reblog and prayers will always be appreciated.

RIP my one and only Prince Charming 🥺❤️🪦⚰️

Cashapp $prettymom18

UPDATE JAN15th 8:54pm

Still 0 help but I’m still great full for all the reposts and likes if you know anyone who may be able to help or has a big following on here PLEASE don’t hesitate to tag them in ur repost or just tag them on the comments ❤️🙏

PS my friend said if someone wants to donate but they don’t have cash@pp I can give them her Venmo or chime or PayPal so if that is what is stopping you from donating DM me and I can send you her vënmø or paypãł

Thank y’all again♥️

XO XO XO and GOD BLESS🙏🏽

Katie 🥰⚰️🪦🫶🏽👩‍👧‍👧❤️‍🔥💔✝️

I probably should’ve put this in the original post but I’m having trouble getting donations and I’m doing this all by myself his family hasn’t even called me since I told them he passed and I was a foster kid so I really don’t have anyone to help. The only person that is helping me is financially struggling too but she took out a loan bc my credit sucks so I was denied anyway thank u if u have anyone on here who u talk to a lot see if they can repost it too I wanna get some type of traction lol

UPDATE JAN 16th

Tumblr BLOCKED ME FROM MESSAGES WTF HAPPENED!!!! Someone plz help me get my messages back

Plus still no donations so please keep reposting and thank you for all the support from the reblogs

Jan18 update

Thank you to whoever sent $5 that’s the first and only donation I’ve gotten so far

Please if u can’t donate repost and tag your friends!!! I don’t know what I’m going to do if I can’t raise enough for the funeral, I don’t even have enough for a cremation

Jan 20 update

Im $30 short to start a payment plan with the funeral home I have an appointment tomorrow morning at 9am PLEASE SEND HELP either repost or dono

Anything helps us!

Help us bury my kids dad and my fiancé!

GOD BLESS PRAYERS ARE WELCOME TOO!

Jan 30th update♥️❤️‍🔥🥺😭🚨

So I DIDNT get enough money to have a funeral for my fiancé 😖😭 we had to cremate him and they put me on a payment plan. I still want to have a repass but I need to get a hall or something to gather everyone. The cheapest one I’ve found is $350 for 5 hours

ANY HELP WOULD BE APPRECIATED AND HELPFUL

I want to celebrate his short life and the memories we all have with him ♥️

It’s been 3 almost 4 weeks since he’s been gone and life being a widow mother of 2 is a lot harder than I ever imagined. Please repost even if you can’t help ❤️‍🔥

@localmacguffin @laymedowninsheetsoflinen @enderamethyst @transgendz @othert @pixelstx @spongebobssquarepants @queenpandaxoxo @pukicho @shareyourdollar @mutual-aid-booster @horangi @jacklant3rn @bugs-for-hugs @difficult @commie-cosmo @yellowgirl93 @racism-inc @mousedetective @vaspider @shineemoon @queenpandaxoxo

[apricotbuncakes]

"How does donating to your GoFundMe support your Top Surgery?"

I'm glad you asked about this -> gofundme and how it works!

But first: if you can't afford to donate, REBLOG THIS TO HELP IT REACH MORE PEOPLE. You can also repost it to other sites or share directly with those you know can help! This helps a lot because I'm unable to constantly reblog and share it, limiting my reach to external communities.

GoFundMe, in it's most basic explanation, is a collection service that tracks how much money a certain fund has been donated to and holds onto it for the individual/group/organization until they withdrawl (or 'cash out') the money.

GoFundMe takes a portion of what is donated to keep their own business running, but most of it still goes to the person you intended to donate to! This is also why surpassing a goal when on a crowdfunding service is extremely important. If I got exactly 10,000 in donations, I wouldn't have actually made all of that money because of the portion that is taken out.

That said, it is still incredibly helpful! Of the money that I can receive from the donations, I can put that towards so many different things!!

Due to legislation and otherwise hostile environments being created for trans people across the United States (in what is rightfully being called a genocide, but I digress) I'm choosing to go the 'out of pocket' route for top surgery, meaning I'm not relying on my insurance for the procedure. Insurance can take significantly longer, and they have a limited number of people in network (aka people who accept my insurance for payment) that can perform this. It can also limit 'cosmetic' aspects, even if those things are considered standard practice, like nipple crafts.

Basically, by paying 'out of pocket' I'm allowing myself a shorter wait time because im not having to fight with insurance, or sacrificing quality over coverage.

Is crowdfunding my only option to cover this? No! I'm saving up what I can, but I work an hourly-wage job that is considered under livable wage even though it's above the minimum. I'm scheduled to work 116 hours at a part time job for college students, just in the month of March. Because I'm disabled in several aspects, this is taking a significant toll on my physical well being. I am in a better position than other people because I'm living with one of my partner's family who provides transportation, rent (housing), electric, and water utilities, and in trade I help with food through Food Assistance, a portion of the car payment, and my portion of the phone bill. I'm also paying back the minimum monthly cost for my student loans (though I'm working to get that paused for the time being). But I'm still not making $1,000 a month after taxes and bills, which means that without spending extra money, I'm only saving a few hundred a month on my own for this goal.

All of that means that I'll need to look into financing options, what are essentially loans for medical procedures. That's where the crowdfunding comes in. While I am able to make monthly payments to cover this, depending on the plan, interest can start up in under a year. With a $10,000 surgery (that price includes the estimated costs for doctor visits, tests/scans, the procedure itself, aftercare supplies, money set aside for bills while I can't work during recovery, etc) waiting to pay all of that after the interest has started adding could take literal years, and I'd be pouring more money than I can afford into it. By crowdfunding however, I would be able to get the surgery and prior/post supplies and expenses paid for, and then pay for most (if not all) of the finances/loans I took out for it after.

Basically, in my circumstances, the crowdfunding is being raised to help me pay the loans I need for this procedure off, amongst other expenses related to the surgery.

"But why do you NEED top surgery?"

Without getting into the statistics, or even legislative parts of it (and what may try to stop me from getting it by proxy), I'll stick to the facts of my individual situation.

My breasts are a literal pain in my back, and with Fibromyalgia (a disability that causes chronic pain, even when 'nothing' is wrong, a poor explanation but one that is satisfactory for this discussion) it just makes it that much worse. My breasts are rather large and are causing me a great deal of struggle to even breath properly because of their weight.

Even if that wasn't the case though, they cause me significant gender dysphoria, meaning my body is distressing me because it doesn't match my perceived sense of self as a man (or masc) person. Socially, emotionally, and mentally, they limit my transition and health, so removing them is in my best interest (my therapist even agrees). Getting this surgery done ASAP is a priority for me because of this, as well as the aforementioned growing hostility for trans people, and Anti-Trans legislation that feeds into that.

"What else are you doing to raise money?"

I understand that some people are cautious to donate money to someone who may not bring doing tbeir on effort to save money themselves.

As I said before, I'm saving what I can with my disposable income (or money that does not go directly to bills and expenses). I'm not spending on frivolous things (for me, that's eating out, new clothes, trinkets, subscription services or otherwise unneeded items). Unneeded items do not include pet supplies, medication expenses, NEEDED clothing (like weather appropriate clothes for the season), hygiene products like deodorant and soap, and other items that are not bills but are still needed.

But I'm also going to start applying for grant/scholarship money for trans people, or money I don't have to pay back. This money (should I qualify AND receive it) will go directly towards my surgery expenses so I don't have to pay as much money back on loans.

There is a chance I won't receive any of them that I apply for, which is why my gofundme goal is the total cost still, so I'm not low balling myself and having to raise the goal later.

If you really want to, I'm also opening commissions (three slots total). Because I'm packing myself to the brim with my main job, I won't be able to complete them as quickly, though I will work on them as frequently as possible. Commissions have the benefit of the money going DIRECTLY to me, so gofundme doesn't get a cut of it.

Have any other questions? My ask box and DMs are open!!

[merriclo]

clo clo what did shane and ryan do i used to watch them but i dont anymore and i have not been keeping up with internet drama

okay so this happened a while ago and i’m sure im forgetting a bit of it, but yknow how Shane and Ryan left Buzzfeed to create Watcher Entertainment with Steven Lim? and the economic crisis that’s been happening for the past while? and how Shane and Ryan’s audience is made up primarily of people below the poverty line or without easy access to money?

well, one day they decided to announce that they were moving all of their content to a unique, watcher-only streaming service, costing ≈$4 USD, a price they said that anybody could afford. they were going to be removing all of their videos from youtube within a month, and designate this new streaming service as the only place anyone could possibly watch their content.

at the time i believe they were releasing 3 or so videos a month, meaning that a month subscription of $4 USD (no tax) would result in each video (typically averaging 15-25 minutes, so long as it’s not Ghost Files) costing $1.25 USD.

the reception was fucking awful, and they lost hundreds to thousands of subscribers within the hour. the comment section was full of people saying that they had watched this video while in line to get food stamps, or that they were only able to watch their videos while using the free wifi at fast food places. people were pissed beyond belief.

above that, prior to the video, it had been a growing sentiment that Watcher, specifically Ghost Files, was becoming over-produced, and that the initial allure of Buzzfeed Unsolved was how raw and human it felt among the sea of heavily edited and impersonal content. the low production value was, for many, a key selling point. (the paranormal believers also felt that their large team was disrupting the process of acquiring evidence.) Watcher also had a Patreon set up, which many felt was underutilized and yielded no real benefit for its patrons.

additionally, it really didn’t seem like Watcher needed the money that badly. this is the channel whose CEO drives a Tesla, that easily gets millions of views, that got sponsored by a Whole Ass State once. there’s a popular (and very likely) theory that their lack of money was a result of poor financial management, and was mainly blamed on CEO Steven Lim.

in the end, their reaction was swift, and they decided to use a separate, paid platform (i forget if it’s Patreon or their streaming service) to upload videos one month early, but to keep posting videos for free on YouTube. a lot of people forgave them, but i personally don’t see the worth in their content anymore, past or present. especially when a core part of Shane’s online persona was staying cheap and insulting capitalism at any given chance. everything feels disingenuous and like a cash grab now :/