Not to fuel the fire, but I totally agree. I'm against buying votes, which is exactly what this is.
First of all, this entire contest is about buying votes. It has nothing to do with your level of fandom, your platform, how many friends you have, etc. It's all about "how many subscriptions can you sell?". In an arena like that, I don't know that there's anything wrong with buying a few to put yourself over the top. When I was a kid I sold "Captain O" products (stationary and stuff) door to door, so I could win cool prizes. I remember when I was a few points away from the prize I wanted, I had not problem buying an item for myself (or selling more to the family). I don't see how this is any different. Dustin is running for a free trip to Comic Con. If he was down by 4 votes, he'd be stupid NOT to buy a few subscriptions and pop himself over the top. That trip is expensive.
We should have a true fan win, not the guy with the most backing and money. I think the buying of votes would put a big hole in their "we are just doing this for fun" speech.
You don't think that Dustin is a true Star Wars fan? I know some of you guys don't like the dude, but come on. Just because he works for Rebelscum doesn't mean he's not a fan just like (and probably even more than) a lot of other people out there. As for "doing this for fun", it's become very obvious it's not just for fun anymore. He's trying VERY hard to win.....and that's why I think eventually some cash will have to be laid down. Maybe that USC guy is already taking money out of pocket, who knows?
Like any election, the person who has the best campaign and/or the most cash will win. Dustin has the backing of tons of sites, plus the Rebelscum juggernaut behind him. All of that's free.
Whoever this USC person is, they're doing it rather covertly. Do they really have that many friends? Are they picking up the referrals of people who don't want Dustin to win? Is it Lucasfilm just screwing around giving Dustin a goal to beat? No matter who that dude is....he's doing incredible for having no campaign at all.
Still...When it comes down to the last week or two, I'd imagine if it's really close, the candidates could throw a few bucks towards their free trip to Comic Con into the kitty themselves. Up until this point, it's all been free, right?
