I admit that "the old fart" in me was initially put off by Drake's over-the-top Youtube videos. But after I met him in person at SELEM, I softened my position.
For one, he's not nearly so bombastic in person. Most of that is just an act to help drive viewers to his Youtube channel.
Then too, he's very smart; I greatly enjoyed chatting with him. He can certainly hold his own while discussing the tech.
He's also keenly inquisitive; when he was at SELEM it was like watching a kid in a candy store. Like so many first-timers, he wanted to know everything! But he didn't just pepper people with endless questions. He participated in the discussions, shared his own experiences, and definitely soaked up a great deal of knowledge. He also squealed with delight when he saw the lovely plasma glow of a Spectra-Physics 168 running with the top off. (As did just about every other dude in the room, including yours truly. There's just something sexy about old-school ion lasers...)
Nearly every laserist has burned something with a laser at one point or another and thought to themselves "that was pretty neat". So I can't really begrudge Drake for indulging in that. True, some of his videos seem to pander a bit too much to the balloon-popping crowd. But when you consider that tomorrow's laserists might come from members of his Youtube audience, I'm grateful for the fact that Drake takes the time to add some laser safety information to his videos and to present some of the science along with the spectacle.
To be fair, this is a problem for everyone. I know I've gotten into some really stupid (and nasty) flame wars, and I'm still ashamed by that. When you're stuck with a text-only medium that just makes it even harder to avoid.
With regard to Drake in particular, I have the unfair advantage in that I've met him in person. More to the point, we talked specifically about his Youtube videos. And after we had that chat I found that I wasn't nearly as bothered by the issue. I think if more people had a similar opportunity, they'd have a similar change of opinion.
Adam