Yep like I said, but perhaps did not emphasize enough, your shares alone won't move the needle much, but the collective entirety of retail investors lending out

Yep like I said, but perhaps did not emphasize enough, your shares alone won't move the needle much, but the collective entirety of retail investors lending out their shares (whether they are paid for it or not) definitely does move the needle. And on top of that, the shorters have more supply to draw on and there is less price pressure on the shorting premium as a result.