Doing it means you will have to leave academia is the point. Your performance is measured in published papers - how much you published and where.

Not publishing means you are not producing which means not being hired after.

I don’t think it’s that black and white. What you publish is more important than where at least in some fields.

If you don't publish it in the right venue nobody will read it, which means nobody will cite it, which means you did the work for nothing. At least in all fields where I know people.

There’re also articles in prestigious journals that aren’t getting any citations. There’re other ways to engage people with your research.

Sounds utterly insane.

More then that. Academia is hyper competitive. It is kind of pyramid with huge amount of smart hard working people falling out on every level.

It is difficult to get position, so if you want to stay in, you need to keep your record perfect.