don't attribute to malice what can be attributed to stupidity.
when there is economic gain to be had for exploiting this relationship,
it will be exploited.
My point was that there's no need for an economic gain (most people's absurd
fanaticism for a given sports team brings them no economic gain whatsoever).
It has more to do about some kind of brown-nosing, but where the only actual
benefit you get in return is to feel closer to the Authority and thus
less vulnerable. Of course you also then need to spit harder on the
opponent in order to convince yourself you've made the right choice.
Or maybe I guess someone might say it's just another case of "cognitive
dissonance": the more they get abused by MS, the stronger they'll
support it.