I'm a newbie.
I found this forum while searching the Internet for scope reviews.
I "invested" a few hours reading a bunch of threads, and stumbled upon the drop-testing stuff.
To be blunt, I had no idea scopes could be unreliable. I assumed a more expensive scope had more features or had a better view.
My time and money are valuable to me. Especially my time.
In the end, my time invested in learning about scope reliability, and the fact that I'm going to purchase a scope with a passing drop test record, and the fact that I now know I have to test my setup should, in the end, save me time and money, even though the initial outlay in both time and money will be higher.
Something to consider is that many people read forums and never post. Maybe a lot more than you would expect.
Posting useful and true information matters. IDGAF about how someone "feels" about something or whether or not their identity is tied to something. I do care about solid facts. In all areas of my life the simple application of basic scientific principles has made everything easier and more tolerable.
I am very grateful for this information, so thank you!