"....I think some are kidding themselves assuming we don't know."

Then explain the weekly bellyaching: "Them nasty mean ol' MAX/MAYA elitists. How DARE they declare my latest Vicky render to be NO ART" posts ?

Or the desperate attempts to inflict "professional weightmap rigging" onto the Poserverse so we finally can play with the big boys.?

Nope.
The majority live in a pink colored bubble, mollified by the idea that owning a credit card is all what's needed to be a real 3D ARTIST.

Of course "Buy our stuff and you'll be a cool 3d ARTIST" sounds much better than "Buy our stuff and be a virtual Barbie collector", doesn't it ?

And no, being paid neither makes you a true "professional" nor a true "artist".
Working hard to reach a certain degree of skill does.