In 2012, Jimmy Donaldson, then 13 years old, posted his first YouTube clip under the name “MrBeast6000”. 11 years later and 218M subscriptions later, Donaldson’s audience was the 6th largest country in the entire world.
Jimmy began to focus his content as he grew in popularity on extreme challenges and tests. Videos such as “$456,000 Squid Game In Real Life!”, “I Adopted All Dogs in the Shelter!”, and “Anything you can fit in this circle I’ll pay for!” have generated hundreds of millions in views.
Thanks to YouTube’s advertising revenues share program, MrBeast earned approximately $110M last year from these videos.
Donaldson’s business is fascinating because he actually makes money by giving away money. How does the YouTuber have the money to give $450k away to a Squid Game Winner or $100,000 to someone who just pushes a button?
His advertising revenue is so high that it exceeds the cash giveaways he makes.
MrBeast went a step farther in his charitable efforts a few weeks back. He didn’t just give strangers money, but he also paid for surgery to help 1,000 blind people see for the first time.
Around the world, there are 200M people with vision impairment. Half of these people could be treated by a simple 10-minute surgery. What’s the problem? The majority of these patients lack the funds and/or access necessary to undergo this surgery.
MrBeast then paid for the surgeries of 1,000 people (and also made several $10,000+ donations to some patients, just because he could). He uploaded a video to YouTube of the entire thing.
The video went viral.
I was shocked. This is really cool. This is pretty cool.
TechCrunch then published a piece of opinion entitled MrBeast’s blindness video displays systemic ableism.
And man, this piece was full of some wild quotes, but one paragraph really stood out:
The biggest problem is that, in the most general sense, wanting to “cure”, blindness reinforces the moral superiority of those without disabilities towards those with disabilities. Systemic ableism permeates all aspects of society, even though it is not as prevalent as racism or sexism. It is a fact that most abled individuals view disability as an inability of the human condition. As such, those with disabilities are to be pitied and mourned. As MrBeast said in the thumbnail of his video, disabilities must be eliminated — cured.
“The biggest problem with trying to “cure” the blindness of those without disabilities is that it reinforces their moral superiority over those who have disabilities.”
I’m not sure, man. I don’t know how you could watch a video for 15 minutes of 1,000 people seeing their grandchildren in person and think, “Yep.” This is systemic ableism. “We can’t have any of that.”
We live in a time of virtue signaling, and I’m not surprised. After thinking about it for a couple of days, I’ve come up with some thoughts.
1) Being bitter because someone did not help you in the way you preferred does not make you the champion of the disenfranchised. You become an a**hole.
The Pharisees are the religious leaders in the New Testament. They were often seen praying in public and reading scriptures on the street. They knew all 613 Jewish commands by heart and many wore little scriptures attached to their arms.
Then a man named Jesus Christ came to town. One day, Jesus decided to help a man who was lame walk again. The Pharisees, of course, didn’t care about the miracle that they witnessed. They were furious that Jesus had performed this act on the day of rest.
Some people find comfort in finding faults with others’ actions, regardless of how good-hearted they may be. It’s not a good thing to get angry because someone has helped others in the “wrong” way. It makes you a Pharisee.
The Pharisees is the enemy.
2) Losing your money doesn’t mean you can’t help others.
There’s no rule that says altruistic acts can only be considered altruistic when they cause personal harm. MrBeast can fund 1,000 sight-restoration procedures and still make millions, or lose millions. 1,000 people will still gain their vision.
If a good deed improves people’s lives, it’s still a good deed. There’s no ” But Actually’s ” that invalidates benevolent acts that don’t result in monetary loss. If MrBeast could make a profit by publicly helping others, wouldn’t this mean that he would be able to improve more? Profitable philanthropy can be a positive thing if we want to improve as many lives as possible.
3) It is more important to improve the lives of real people than to follow some abstract “what-about”ism.
Since I was three, I’ve worn corrective lenses. But that has never made me feel less human. When I was without contacts or glasses, I wanted only one thing: To see clearly.
It is not true that supplying diabetics with the insulin they need, or helping paraplegics gain motor function, or correcting the eyesight of blind people, implies these people have less value because of their disabilities.
The actions taken simply help people who are suffering from various conditions. This is about improving the lives of real people. It is more important to follow this than to adhere some abstract ableism first mentioned in late 90s sociology PhD thesis.
It’s an ancient proverb: “You can bring a horse near water, but not make him drink.” In the same way, you cannot make people appreciate a good story. Someone who is truly unhappy and angry will succeed.
What is my biggest problem with all this virtue signaling? This is an attempt to steal someone else’s social capital, without having to do the work. You’re like a person walking around the town square shouting “LOOK HOW TERRIBLE THESE PEOPLE ARE,”, hoping your status will improve as they fall.
But virtue signaling is a game of negative sum. You will sometimes succeed in destroying the public image. You won’t become an improved, happier and more respected person overnight. You will still be yourself. You will still be you, but now you’ll live in a world filled with people who are angrier and more resentful.
