"WallStreetBets isn't what it used to be" has been a pretty common refrain since GME put the little gambling sub on the map. Usually people say stuff like this to melodramatically protest some change, other times they're just trying to let everyone know how long they've been around. I try not to form a strong opinion on these things - when something becomes boring or useless, I'll just stop using it. But there was a recent front page (of WSB) post that left me wondering if WallStreetBets had finally succumbed to normie decay (Nu).

Source.

It isn't what it used to be, but that was inevitable. WSB glitched the stock market and rocketed to 10M subscribers in a month, there's no going back even after sending the apes to /r/superstonk. Dilution was unavoidable, but the whole point of Reddit's voting system is to promote good content, so it could survive.

It's worth noting that the (post-coup) moderation has been excellent, but that only goes so far. As it stands, the discussion is overwhelmingly dominated by mindless repetition ("buls r fuk", "bers r fuk", "inverse OP", "inverse Cramer", ...).


You would think the larger, post-GME community would have more quality original content to draw on. Casuals should get bored, leaving the discussion to enthusiasts and a new contingent of mainstream subscribers. WSB seems to have experienced the opposite. It's no secret that many (most?) of the old guard has disappeared, in large part due to sitewide bans that have been easy to come by since Reddit began lengthy preparations to go public.

As long as WSB is well-moderated and continues to be a forum for direct discussion, so it's still in my bookmarks. But the influx of noisy casuals and (sometimes involuntary) exit of core contributors has made it less funny and less informative.

But it's still better than /r/stocks.


So OP posted a screenshot of IRS policies and procedures discussing how to handle suicide threats. That's pretty dark, but since half of WSB after hours discussion is commiserating about losses, the post was on-brand. Worrying about taxes is less on-brand than celebrating an annual $3,000 tax deduction, but that's neither here nor there.

The comments section - where you normally find Cunningham's Law in full effect - was rife with boomer seethe. (Aside: considering how tired and misused it is, I typically only use the term 'boomer' in an ironic fashion. This is an exception.)

/u/theLiving-man -just calmly tell them: if you kill yourself, we will still tax your family

/u/Warlover1 After reviewing all assets the taxpayer has, decide if suicide is best for the government and proceed.

/u/gloomyglooomuses Stay calm and remain on the phone with the taxpayer; do everything to keep the taxpayer alive. An unalive taxpayer can't pay taxes.

/u/ExecuSpeak "Ok, did you successfully put the check in the mailbox with our address? Great. Now you can kill yourself"

/u/mauifranco "Remain on the phone and make sure that he pays his $300 balance before committing suicide"

/u/GixxerTrav I think the way to avoid suicidal tendencies would be to get off the phone immediately with the irs (fucking scum) but, it's the government- they know what's best right?

"Hur hur I paid the IRS in jars of pennies" vibes. The same comment, hashed and rehashed.

I don't even get the hatred. Is the IRS like totally rude when they audit you or something? People get mad like the IRS unilaterally levies taxes. If anything, ensuring accurate tax revenue prevents tax hikes.

Boomer & beyond

/u/dr_akston

Abolish the irs

This is a casino, dude.

/u/Sophisticated_Earl

A government agency that triggers suicidal behavior in its' citizens should not be allowed to exist A government agency that demands money and threatens its' citizens should not be allowed to exist Taxation is theft. Period. The IRS must be stopped. Their behavior is reprehensible and illegal

Lol.

Q&A

Like I said above, even if it's somewhat diluted now, WSB remains a haven for informative, direct discussion:

/u/OkCitizenBloons > While reporting a suicide threat to local law enforcement authorities, state only that the threat was made during a contact involving "official business" . Be careful not to mention the underlying reason for the taxpayer's call. what is this mafia shit

/u/MichaelMach A federal agency reiterating basic practices for protecting private information. Would you rather the IRS inform police and whoever else about your tax situation outside due process?

Even after kilroy debunked the 87,000 IRS agents nonsense, the fake news persists:

/u/RedditsFullofShit 87000 agents will be hired over a decade. So it's not all at once. And it's only 40k agents and 40k support staff answering phones they said. And prior reports say something like $6 is collected for every $1 spent on agents payroll.

/u/Wolf_of_Walmart Yeah this guy is just parroting idiotic takes that he hasn't researched himself. The IRS needs to hire 52k people in the next six years just to maintain their retiring workforce. They also collect $300 for every $1 they spend (based on 2021 data: $4.1T collected on $13.7b in expenses). 30,000% ROI sounds like a pretty efficient use of money. Or in other words, the IRS only spends 0.033% of the total money it collects - the average Vanguard index fund has an expense ratio of 0.09%.