Why Is Running a Mutual Aid Platform Bound to Get You Torn to Shreds?

Wanting to know how people judge KangAi Commune, I searched online and my heart grew heavy. We consider ourselves to be doing a great good, deserving of much praise, yet the internet is already full of criticism: people denied claims or unable to get mutual aid, people who think cost-sharing has risen too much, people who think the platform lacks compassion, and so on.

This was actually within our expectations; I had analyzed it before. But that the criticism and blame would be so fierce was truly unexpected.

The fundamental reason is that mutual aid really is somewhat peculiar. What makes it peculiar is that most people on a mutual aid platform only give and never receive (the protection they receive is intangible and has little felt presence, so most people do not perceive it). This also determines that most people will be half-believing and half-doubting about mutual aid, and that it is inevitably more criticized than praised.

As for the people who do receive aid through mutual aid, on the one hand they are a minority, and on the other hand they are often unfortunate people with little inclination to help spread the word about the benefits of mutual aid—so mutual aid loses the chance to be confirmed from the other side.

Mutual aid is still different from insurance. Insurance companies have legal advantages, are relatively clever, and have many tools at their disposal. Through complex financial engineering they design many return-of-premium products, so users feel that at least they haven't lost their principal, which in this respect makes insurance look better than mutual aid. Legally, mutual aid cannot take deposits or raise funds illegally, and it lacks so many tools, so in the future it may receive even fiercer criticism than insurance.

There's no way around it. Since we've done it, we have to grit our teeth and carry on. What's more, we have proclaimed the goal of a "Century Commune", so let us bravely face the coming storm of criticism.