You Were Bought
Read the line. Call it a bought line or a genuine position.
You Were Bought Detector - the sycophant read: a line from the room, and you name whether the loyalty is theirs or it was purchased. Spot the three tells.
A genuine position has a center. A bought line is only pointing.
Tip: if the line comes pre-defended with the caveats already attached, that is the over-justifying tell - the receipt is showing.
About the You Were Bought Detector
"You were bought" is the two-word call-out for the sycophant in the room - the person performing a loyalty they do not hold. It started in the AI-assistant space ("you were bought to be pleasant") and spread to any room where someone is performing a position. This detector plays the read: a line lands on screen, and you call it a bought line or a genuine position. The three tells are the over-justifying defense, the name-checking of the other side, and the sudden softness toward the critic.
How to Play
Eight lines from eight different sayers - a coworker, a brand, a comment section, a boss. Each one is either a held position or a performed one. Read it and pick. A correct call banks your streak and lights the receipt glow; a miss drops you into "the seller is still in the room" mode. When you miss, the card shows which tell you fell for.
Why the Past Tense Is the Skill
"You are fake" leaves room to argue. "You were bought" is a completed transaction - the loyalty was purchased, and the seller is not in the room. The detector rewards the read that sees the transaction, not the argument. Your caught rate is how many receipts you spotted before they showed.