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Selling Out, Chewbacca and Taking Leave

2009-07-18 · Hank · watch on YouTube · Internet & YouTube · reflection essay

After adding a comic Star Wars objection to John's Chewbacca-for-president campaign, Hank answers John's selling-out video: ads and selling things both buy time for better videos, he prefers selling things, nobody should feel obliged to buy, and he plugs Alan Lastufka and Tom Milsom's YouTube-made album.

What is said

00:00:00 — Chewbacca can't be president: he owes Han Solo a life debt; Akbar-Calrissian attack ad

  • ★★ Hank adds a reason Chewbacca can't be president: he owes Han Solo a life debt, so the president would jump in front of a blaster bolt to save his vice president. (joke) — 00:00:00

00:00:41 — Hank's two cents on selling out: two ways to make money; nobody knows which ads appear

  • ★★★ Hank says there are two ways the brothers make money, advertisements and selling stuff, and he likes both because they let them spend more time making better videos. — 00:00:41 · online advertising
  • ★★ Hank says the brothers have no control over, and don't even know, which advertisements viewers see beside their videos. — 00:01:03 · online advertising
  • ★★ Hank asks viewers to pause and leave a comment saying which advertisements they see, so the brothers know what is going on. (playful) — 00:01:25 · online advertising

00:01:25 — Selling stuff preferred to ads; books, CDs and shirts are part of Nerdfighteria; nobody should feel obliged to buy; cafeteria leftovers

  • ★★★ Hank says the brothers far prefer selling stuff to advertisements, which he feels are a little dirty. (hedged) — 00:01:25 · online advertising
  • ★★ Hank says selling books, CDs and t-shirts is not outside what Nerdfighteria is: on YouTube Hank has written songs since (apparently) his Helen Hunt song, and John books. — 00:01:25 · Nerdfighteria, Helen Hunt
  • ★★★ Agreeing with John, Hank says no one should ever feel obligated to buy something. — 00:01:49
  • ★ Hank says that as a young, poor kid he saved lunch money for CDs by eating other kids' cafeteria leftovers, and tells kids not to do that to buy his CD. (playful) — 00:01:49

00:02:11 — Plug: Taking Leave, a six-track CD by YouTubers Alan Lastufka and Tom Milsom, made without meeting

  • ★★ Hank says he is really into YouTube and loves the idea that his YouTube friends might make some money doing it. — 00:02:11 · YouTube
  • ★★ Hank recommends a six-track, six-dollar CD by YouTubers Alan Lastufka and Tom Milsom, whom he calls one of YouTube's best musicians; they made it without ever meeting. — 00:02:11 · Alan Lastufka, YouTube
  • ★★ Hank says he is happy to be part of the CD, hopes some viewers will buy it, and points to a music video for one of its songs at the end of his video. (hedged) — 00:02:31

00:02:52 — Money lets them spend more time (Truth or Fail, studio music); viewers' 'money is dirty' answers; sign-off and music-video clip

  • ★★★ Hank says they love making videos and would do it without the money, but money lets them spend more time, do things like Truth or Fail and studio music, so they treat it as work. — 00:02:52 · Truth or Fail
  • ★★ Hank reports that many people responded to John's video saying money feels dirty and they trust the brothers to be good people. — 00:02:52 · Nerdfighteria

Humor (significant)

  • Chewbacca owes Han Solo a life debt, so a Chewie-Solo administration has a problem if anyone tries to kill Han. — 00:00:21 > «then you would have the president jumping in front of the bullet, or the blaster bolt, to save the vice president's life»
  • Hank says the life-debt objection is being pushed by a rival ticket. — 00:00:21 > «there's an advertisement paid for by the citizens of Mon Calamari for an Akbar-Calrissian ticket»
  • Hank points at where ads appear around the video player, insisting he has no idea what is there. — 00:01:03 > «before you click that little X I didn't know it was down here either»
  • Hank says he saved lunch money for CDs by eating other kids' cafeteria leftovers, then warns kids. — 00:01:49 > «Do not risk getting a disease to buy my CD.»

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