Mysterious Lowtax Announcement: Details to come eventually

[BathTub]

I think that he shouldn't be considered if for no other reason than his post Katrina cash grab / PayPal fiasco.

He deserves the level of hell reserved for that.

What? because Paypal were bastards?

[Tarantulas]

No, it's because he had people pay via PayPal and then promised them merch for their donations (equating a purchase) then was going to donate the money under his own name and take the tax write off.

That's why...

If he gave two shits, he would have just had people donate money to the Red Cross or other charitable organization that was working in the Katrina effort and then turn in their receipts for "free merch" if he was truly interested in encouraging people to give.

He had an opportunity to keep things above board, and he didn't.  He also I guess never read the PayPal terms of service or remembered he was living in a post 9/11 world.

Lowtax is an asshat of the highest order.

[Msampo]

I LOVE LOWTAX!

This is great news.

What exactly is the news? I've read the whole thread and can't seem to locate it.

Sampo

In some SomethingAwful.com thread, Lowtax said something to the effect of: Wait until you hear the news about RiffTrax and me, Richard "Lowtax" Kyanka. Details to come in the near future.

I haven't heard anything but that and rampant speculation.

Right. I'm aware he said "I'm going to announce something." I'm unaware that he has done so, and can find nothing in this thread or on his site that indicates that he has. Did I miss it? Why are people saying "This is great news"? Are they responding to the completely unfounded speculation that he was going to be on the "Firewall" riff, which he isn't?

Sampo

[BathTub]

I don't recall anyone talking about firewall, and he aint on it anyway.  people are just speculating that he could be on a future one.

[MontyServo]

Yeah, the speculation was that he was going to be a guest riffer.  Probably on Bloodrayne or another Uwe Boll film.  There is not much else that he could be talking about that would involve both him and Rifftrax.

Or maybe he spoke too soon and nothing will come of this at all.

[6079SmithW]

I think that he shouldn't be considered if for no other reason than his post Katrina cash grab / PayPal fiasco.

He deserves the level of hell reserved for that.

What the hell? He was offering SA merchandise in exchange for people donating to Katrina victims, Paypal didn't believe him and froze the account, and everyone got a refund. How the hell is that a cash grab? Do you really think he was just planning to pocket it?

[SaucyRossy]

Yeah I dont know the details of that whole situation...but the fact that you have to pay ten dollars for the full use of the forums...blows.

[David]

Yeah I dont know the details of that whole situation...but the fact that you have to pay ten dollars for the full use of the forums...blows.

If by "full use" you mean reading the forums, searching the forums, reading the archives, and getting an avatar besides the baby they force on you (all separate costs), then the figure runs well above that (into at least 40 dollars I think). They really nickel-and-dime you. At least it's not monthly and a site that popular has to pay the bills somehow.

[6079SmithW]

Yeah I dont know the details of that whole situation...but the fact that you have to pay ten dollars for the full use of the forums...blows.

If by "full use" you mean reading the forums, searching the forums, reading the archives, and getting an avatar besides the baby they force on you (all separate costs), then the figure runs well above that (into at least 40 dollars I think). They really nickel-and-dime you. At least it's not monthly and a site that popular has to pay the bills somehow.

You only get the baby if you leave your title text blank, and better this than begging for money. Besides, it's not like the frontpage isn't free, and the writers for that get paid and are hilarious.

And the archives are being made public, so account+plat+av is only $25, which isn't that bad, really. And you can live without anything but the initial $10.

[Tarantulas]

I think that he shouldn't be considered if for no other reason than his post Katrina cash grab / PayPal fiasco.

He deserves the level of hell reserved for that.

What the hell? He was offering SA merchandise in exchange for people donating to Katrina victims, Paypal didn't believe him and froze the account, and everyone got a refund. How the hell is that a cash grab? Do you really think he was just planning to pocket it?

The problem was that he offered merch to make it look like a purchase so that he was actually the one accepting the money and in turn making the donation.. a donation that he would write off personally.

Not his intention?  Too bad, he had an opportunity to help people and do so totally above board, but he chose not to.

So the black mark is on him, not PayPal, and not the people who donated.

Also charging for his forums and then not telling you that search is not included until you try and use the function and then making a joke about how he's extorting money from you (it's on the page, you can look it up) is not anyone that I would want associated with something I love so much.

The interview thing was even a disaster (unless the whole skype noise thing was a joke to make room for the title of the Rifftrax to be "bleeped" out, but even then I'm sure that was hatched by our boys, and not him).

I enjoy the content on his site, and I hear he even pays some of the better writers, but generally I have nothing but ire for Lowtax.

[6079SmithW]

I think that he shouldn't be considered if for no other reason than his post Katrina cash grab / PayPal fiasco.

He deserves the level of hell reserved for that.

What the hell? He was offering SA merchandise in exchange for people donating to Katrina victims, Paypal didn't believe him and froze the account, and everyone got a refund. How the hell is that a cash grab? Do you really think he was just planning to pocket it?

The problem was that he offered merch to make it look like a purchase so that he was actually the one accepting the money and in turn making the donation.. a donation that he would write off personally.

Not his intention?  Too bad, he had an opportunity to help people and do so totally above board, but he chose not to.

So the black mark is on him, not PayPal, and not the people who donated.

Also charging for his forums and then not telling you that search is not included until you try and use the function and then making a joke about how he's extorting money from you (it's on the page, you can look it up) is not anyone that I would want associated with something I love so much.

The interview thing was even a disaster (unless the whole skype noise thing was a joke to make room for the title of the Rifftrax to be "bleeped" out, but even then I'm sure that was hatched by our boys, and not him).

I enjoy the content on his site, and I hear he even pays some of the better writers, but generally I have nothing but ire for Lowtax.

He was offering merchandise to get people to donate, and you're just assuming that he was going to use it as some super-sneaky scheme to write it off. I don't see where anything he was doing wasn't 'above board'- not only was he encouraging people to donate, he was backing it up.

Why are you so angry, anyway? You're halfway to a "Dear Richard" letter, for chrissakes.

[Conor]

Yeah, this doesn't seem to be headed in a positive direction.