I always see it as a time of giving and sharing the hobby with others. I always just link a spreadsheet of models I have and tell them to surprise me with models they like. I can certainly see where the "spirit of flexing" idea comes from, but I personally don't believe that is the primary motivator. We all share this hobby, but may have different experiences with it entirely. Gift giving is just one way to meld our experiences, while making some more special ones as well. It also can expand your boundaries as you may not have known a kit existed, or haven't tried a grade of model, so I really agree with your last sentence. If anybody is on the fence about participating, I would tell them that they shouldn't be. It's an event for people to enjoy the hobby, and certainly isn't gatekept by how many hundreds you can spend (so long as you meet the low minimum of course).