#technically not snakes

I see a lot of folks saying things to the effect of, "don't reward Tumblr for making things worse/not listening to their userbase/not adding features I need-want-like." I also see a lot of posts saying that the organizers of Crab Day are TERFs, neo-Nazis, and/or ultraconservatives.

While I agree that TERFs and Nazis (neo and paleo) need to be yote into the sun, whoever started this idea was not wrong about the site needing money to continue operating. Tumblr is a business. That's how businesses work.

Now, they can get money from advertisers and monetization partners, or they can get it from users. If they get it from advertisers/investors, those parties have the opportunity to weigh in on features they think will generate more revenue... like Tumblr Live... which is objectively trash. Tumblr Live is powered by LiveBox, an add-on service provider that enables sites to host live streaming content to generate revenue. Tumblr is also trying to attract users from the X-Twitter exodus by making the interface more familiar to these users. Was this a bad idea? Yes. It's a desperate attempt to attract more users so as to increase ad views and generate more revenue. But, remember, Tumblr is a business. That's how businesses work.

For YOU (and me!), Tumblr is a community. It's a platform for our art. It's a meeting place for friends and like-minded individuals. It's a safe space for self-expression. It's the last mostly-unmonetized bastion of social media in a landscape dominated by influencers, hustlers, and data-miners. For TUMBLR STAFF, Tumblr is a service that they are trying to sell so that they can obtain money that they can then exchange for food, housing, repayment of student loans, etc. If they can't afford those things by selling you their services, then they will literally go do something else. Yes, Tumblr is indeed a business and not just a passion project. That's how businesses work.

So by buying things directly from Tumblr, like a $3 crab-summoning gift, and especially as part of a coordinated effort like Crab Day and/or Crab Week, you are telling Tumblr Staff that YOU are a CUSTOMER, not just a monetizable data point. We are, in a very distant sense, establishing ourselves as a body of influence. If Tumblr sees that we can and will do this en masse, they are more likely to treat us as contributors and potentially shareholders who need to be kept happy. We each have a vested interest in the continuation of this site, and we have a rare opportunity to show the specific value of that interest.

Also, for those who want more accessibility tools, this is a great way to get those implemented. Accessibility for web applications is a big, big business and toolkits and training for accessibility standards tend to cost quite a lot. Training for a single accessibility plug-in toolkit can cost around $2000 per user*. That's about 667 crabs. By participating in Crab Day, even just a little bit or even just spreading the word about it or even just allowing others to participate as they please without pitching a ragequit tanty about it, you can tell Tumblr staff that you're here as a customer, your voice needs to be heard, and your needs are important.

If this doesn't work, and Tumblr doesn't take their userbase seriously after we make a concerted effort to support them, then please by all means go back to whatever version of complaining makes you feel most satisfied. But just for now, let's try something new!