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Comment by pjc50 | Hacker News Reader

> "Whenever I watch these videos I’m awed and scared at the lengths to which humans in the twenty-first century will go to slurp up the drips of unimaginable wealth that the algorithm leaks out through Mr. Beast."

That's it, isn't it? It's the exact opposite of dignity of labour: it's compensation for degradation. The "voluntary" part is just highlighting how willing people are to trade in unnecessary misery for the entertainment of the comfortable.

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On many levels I agree with you. But, you can also look at this thru the paradigm of the "hero's journey". A normal person, plucked from the masses is given a harrowing mission. If they survive, there is glory ($$$), if not, then there is failure (Internet ridicule).

Granted, Mr. Beast is not giving us the story of Luke Skywalker, but I can understand the rational of the person taking the challenge.

For most people watching, it's just torture porn, but content providers have to give the people what they want to make a buck....

Yes, but the difference here is that the mission is inherently unnecessary. Consider the JFK speech and what went before choosing to go to the moon:

"But why, some say, the moon? Why choose this as our goal? And they may well ask why climb the highest mountain? Why, 35 years ago, fly the Atlantic? Why does Rice play Texas?"

Perhaps we've conquered all the naturally "hard" things and are left only with artificial challenges to inflict on ourselves and others. Climbing the highest mountain for the first time has a kind of natural "because it's there" dignity to it. But it's become a littered tourist spot now.

> torture porn, but content providers have to give the people what they want to make a buck

Someone could quite easily write 1k words on what the word "porn" is doing in that sentence and how it relates to desire, suffering and spectacle.

The other difference is that anyone can do them. I don't think you could have competitions about things that are at all useful and necessary that are accessible to everyone.

In fairness, Rice playing Texas is also an artificial challenge.

All missions are kind of unnecessary. Youtubes entire mission is unnecessary, it's nothing but entertainment and some education. Mr. Beasts videos clearly provide a lot of people with joy considering how many subscribers he has. Hard for me to say he's not providing value to those people.

This has a hint of a moral relativism. “All things people do/will pay for must be valuable and good”. I think that is mistaken.

Maybe we could say “all human desire is ok, but behaviors can be good or bad”

Can’t agree. Things that people will pay for are by definition valuable, and that value makes them good. Now obviously we have to consider harm, if there’s more harm than value the goodness is wiped out, but I see very little harm in these videos. It’s a win win win for everyone involved.

> but content providers have to give the people what they want to make a buck...

Modern entertainment really is a blight. At least when I was a kid public TV was making shows which were both entertaining and trying to uplift people. There is something slightly despicable about this race to the bottom mentality if that’s what people want, we are not guilty of feeding them garbage.

So, just a shade away from Squid Game?

"Compensation for degradation" defines most kinds of labor. To labor means to suffer, and compensation is the other word for salary.

So it's not certain this is the "exact opposite" of labor; maybe it's its ulterior incarnation.

They said "opposite of dignity of labour"; not "opposite of labour".

Where's the dignity of working in a coal mine and getting black lung, the dignity of lifting heavy things all day and living with chronic pain through your later years, the dignity of fulfilling inane requests from rude customers?

Far too often the idea of dignity is used to repress people who are simply busting their ass for someone else to afford a meager lifestyle.

There's some dignity in doing something that has a point. Doesn't negate the need for better, safer working conditions and good pay but there's a big psychological difference between digging coal (which you know will go on to heat homes) and sitting in a circle and having the internet laugh at you.

Creating content that millions will enjoy in exchange for six figures of cash is something that has a point.

The internet wasn't laughing at that dude.

I assume most people here are too good to watch Mr Beast /this video and are simply inserting into it whatever is most convenient to their argument.

The dude is amazing. It was a fun enough video. His family is beautiful and watching how he "survived" based on the strength of his love of family was great.

Better than 95% of the garbage on youtube.

No, you don't understand the dignity of court jestering. Humiliation was invented last thursday on twitter.

I don't think creating videos that people enjoy has any less of a point than mining coal.

Dollar for dollar, I'll take the circle.

Me too. I just do understand why someone wouldn't.

I was hoping to find a Nye Bevan (former coal miner and inventor of the NHS) quote on the subject, but alas I can't. I will just note that a lot of early 20th century labour organising was built around not eradicating such work but making it appropriately compensated, safe, and respected.

>To labor means to suffer

I disagree with this intrinsically.

Certainly, some labor is suffering, but what it actually means is to put forth effort. To some people, any effort put forth is suffering, but that's certainly not always the case. Laboring on behalf of something you believe in deeply can be joyful. If you really have never experienced this, I urge you to change your habits and try to find a way to do things that you can take joy in.

agree —- i kept waiting for the author to spend more time on the indignity and exploitation Mr. Beast is dispensing. there are desperate people out there that will leap at a chance for this much cash. how long until we see a Mr. Beast version of https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Running_Man_(King_novel) (the arnold movie is ultra cheesey and fun too)

I think we're already halfway there with the "MrBeast Squid Game".

I don’t disagree here either, but nobody is dying yet and it’s not a recurring series :)

> That's it, isn't it? It's the exact opposite of dignity of labour: it's compensation for degradation.

You're not wrong, but it's not that new - see 1930s dance marathons https://www.historylink.org/file/5534#

“They Shoot Horses, Don’t They?” for the 21st century

"The "voluntary" part is just highlighting how willing people are to trade in unnecessary misery for the entertainment of the comfortable."

Aye comrade, aye.

You say Mr Beast, I say Capitalism.

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