Thought I better wrap-up this somewhat unwieldy thread that I started.
First off, thanks to all those that made it through the varied musings of my OP! And even more so to those that thought it worthy of reply!
While never intending to excuse the channels' general decline, or suggest any scapegoat for it, my main objective with this one was to try to move past the old ground of why the decline may have occurred. Instead I wanted to ask if our responses to the symptoms of that decline were adding to the problem itself by causing more ill-feeling with the babes, etc., and also tending towards forfilling the label of 'freeloader'.
Is a possible 'us and them' attitude between the babes and those that pass comment on the shows an unfortunate by-product of such a critique..? To what extent are babes and the industry itself justified in any irritation with what is said about them online?
You see I am trying to look for logic in the increasingly poor attitudes we sometimes see from the babes (even if that logic is rooted in an emotional reaction to whatever caused it). Anyone trying to explain these things has to look inward for possible 'causes' (the babes are reacting to something) however unreasonable that cause may seem to us.
Why has the babes' freeloader label become more common in its use in recent years for instance? As Bandwagon reminded us, there have always been strict non-callers and there always will be. It does indeed seem to me that the term has become a scapegoat for poorly commercially performing sessions in an industry replete with excuses. I maintain that we perhaps should exercise a little caution at times so as not to add to their list unnecessarily.
As to the basis of the title question, I wonder whether we are sometimes more influenced by 'the crowd' than we are prepared to admit. There is a whole psychology to 'groupthink'. Applied to us, it at least cautions against knee-jerk reactions based on assumptions derived from industry stereotypes. (I myself have probably been guilty of that one on occasion - just because something is true on more than once doesn't mean it
always is the case!). I think we have some need to be wary at times of forming a group mentality.
I do concede that the need for a balanced and constructive critique of the shows appears to have never been stronger. Critique, with solutions aimed at eradicating deficiencies within the show's visual product, will at least give channels and babes alike some food for thought. We can only hope that they are prepared to face the meal!
As a group I feel we may indeed be inclining more people towards becoming non-spenders... It may not be the root cause of the issue, or anything like it, but I maintain that general comment here sometimes helps to process along. The influence of peer opinions can not be denied. My worry is that the more we protest against what the industry is becoming the more people will limit their spending on it. The only question is how far reaching that effect will ever become. The scope of the membership here may in fact limit to any effects to the local. I just don't think the effect can be denied completely.
This was not a call for major change on here, that would in no way be my or any individual posters place to ask for, it was just a thought that I felt was best expressed. I hope that posters think it is a discussion worth having at least.