Well you didn't mention anything about values (which I'll admit was surprising), so is it still a straw man if I actually thought that's what you were saying?
No, if you actually thought that, it was a fair comment. I just figured I'd earned the benefit of the doubt by now. Maybe a few more posts will do it... :P
The average donation is $8.18 and the median is $3, both of which are significantly closer to $1 than $50. Since it's all a spectrum anyway, I guess $10 is just a bigger deal to other people than it is to me.
10 bucks isn't a big deal in the grand scheme of things, but someone donating to this probably is impulse grabbing gum at the checkout counter, buying random items from Amazon, etc. etc.
This one item isn't a big deal, but it's a reflection of the larger issue - people spending money on things that have very little value if it were properly reflected on.
It's a funny joke. There are lots of those that can be had for free. Paying for something you value is great.
I just doubt most people can genuinely say they find a lot of value in this beyond a short term chuckle. It's like someone buying a giant SUV they don't need because they're supposed to. It's mindless. Most of the donations to this were "hah, that's amusing, this guy's already had $10,000 thrown at him for a potato salad ...[???]... I'm going to donate $10."
The gap in the middle is what I'm questioning.
"I enjoy performance art and want to encourage more." = Cool.
"___" (literally blank, no thought, just mindless) = Meh.
I'm saying I think it's more the latter than the former.
But it's okay Russ, we still love you even though you gave a guy money to make a potato salad. :)