> let's not pretend that inclusion in the index doesn't mean real money is at stake

Straw man. Nobody claims this. The point is (a) the state of decisionmaking was misrepresented for clicks and (b) the effects of a decision one way or the other way way overblown.

Hating on Musk sells subs. That's fair and, frankly, deserved. It doesn't mean we need to get misled chasing that high.