Try thinking more than one step ahead here.
Tell me, how could Rinaldo have known what was going on behind the scenes? What if a celebrity was paid to do a commercial for Theranos or Enron? How could they have possibly known what was going on behind closed doors?
Literally impossible, yet you want people sued because you're emotional about it and can't think logically past step one. We're talking logic here and you're hung up on partisanship.
I never made any declarative statements about what the appropriate level of punishment should be for the bad conduct in question. Only that there should be punishment, responsibility, and accountability.
I'm not hung up on partisanship at all. I have a position here, based on my personal values, and not based on taking the opposite stance from the other side. I've simply offered an analysis of the rank hypocrisy I see over this issue. That's all.
If you want me to talk about how I actually feel over this specific case (which is the most boring thing to talk about here honestly, I'd rather have a broader conversation about the more important stuff related to this issue) I'll offer this -
Should Ronaldo be liable for one billion clams over his endorsement of FTX? No
Does Ronaldo have any chance of losing this case? No
Will this case be dismissed and not even make it to the court room? Pretty good chance of that, yes.
Should Ronaldo face some sort of consequences for promoting fraud, in the name of accountability and taking responsibility? Yes.
I hope that settles you down a bit.
It would be more than appropriate for him to face some slap on the wrist fine, an amount that he would scoff at, and make a public statement apologizing. Maybe $50,000 on the small end, and a 5 minute press conference where he acknowledges he was careless with his seal of approval and people got hurt as a result. Is a press conference a bit dramatic? Ok fine. Do a fuckin' tweet apologizing and pay the fine. I'm hardly going to shed a tear for someone worth a half billion paying a negligible fine and posting a tweet. On the high end of the fine, maybe you hit him for a million dollars, along with the other big name celebrity endorsers, and you put that money into a fund that gets some money back to the victims. Obviously it would only ever be a drop in the bucket compared to what was stolen.
I am sick and fucking tired of the "grift economy" that has absolutely been exploding out of control in the States. It is the culmination of a deeply entrenched moral hazard that has been gaining momentum in this country for decades. It is seeping into all walks of life. Politicians grifting the fuck out of their voters and fleecing them for hundreds of millions of dollars in merch, or schemes to take political donations and divert them towards your legal defense. Content creators grifting the fuck out of their viewers and subscribers, often who are just naive children using their parents credit cards. Video game developers scamming their players with false advertising, unfinished products, and psychologically manipulative micro transactions. Fitness coaches and dieticians, selling e books and courses for thousands about how to get fit and be healthy using the latest bro-science science-free trends that will leave their adherents physically worse off. "Alpha male" "sigma male" misogyny peddling dickheads selling men's insecurity about women back to them for thousands of dollars with private discord groups, courses, e books, and more. Cryptocurrency and NFTs - entire techno-financial ecosystems that are almost exclusively used to commit fraud, scams, and separate people from their money. Corporations, wealthy people and small business owners taking out billions of dollars in PPP loans that they
knowingly did not need, then having their massive multi-million dollar loans forgiven and immediately turning around to lecture the American people about how the 30 year old accountant making $56,000/year doesn't deserve to have his $40,000 in student loans forgiven.
The grift economy in America is insane, its out of control, and has exponentially exploded in recent years. It presents a very serious moral and material hazard to the entire country (and to the other wealthy western countries where this stuff is picking up in prominence and frequency). I support any type of action, whether intended or unintended, that reigns in and cracks down on the grift/scam/fraud economy. That is why you are not going to see me crying and rushing to Ronaldo's defense, even though as I stated, I personally don't think he should be liable to pay one billion dollars in damages for his bad endorsement. Cheers.
