Let me see if I understand this, Duncan Black puts up a post that says 

"Thanksgiving Robot Shopping.   Everybody needs a robot vacuum cleaner" 

with an Amazon link to one and someone in his audience buys him one?   What's he going to use all that vacuuming free time for, writing?   Or does he get a kickback for everyone who buys one through that link?   And what are all those Eschatots going to do with all their freed-up time, read his posts?   

Geesh, if ten people tell me they'll give me ten bucks I'll put up a begging link, if I can find one that doesn't make me feel tainted with supporting someone like Peter Thiel who I just loathe with more bile than all the gallbladders in the world produce.   I'll use the leisure it buys to write better posts and more of them.  There are a lot of papers I'd love to be able to afford to read.