This is gonna be the thread where we talk about stuff

Is it just me or does Patreon exist basically to attempt to legitimize e-begging.

Um, well, as someone with a Patreon... thing... myself, I disagree.

Seems like your complaint is more directed towards youtube folks hoping to make easy cash or something? Lots of Patreon sellers offer actual content behind the subscription tiers. And I don't think anyone's going to seriously debate whether the word "subscription" is appropriate, because of course that's what it is.

I'm pretty sure that most people who make silly web videos don't remotely make a living off of it. You can't really blame them for trying, though. And YouTube's been full of junk since forever - that's just Sturgeon's Law.