Sick of this!!

Little Italy

whygohome wrote:

Something needs to be done about the disgusting business of concert ticket sales. I realize PJ tried many years ago, but to go through a pre-sale process like I did today, an to receive NOTHING for my 7 hours of waiting on ticketmaster's site , only to see jacked up prices on stubhub, etc, is bull shit!!

I had an asshole charge me 200 dollars above the face value for tickets to one of the Philly shows in the fall. Making money off of a PJ concert is truly repulsive, and, if I could, I would have loved nothing more than to beat the shit out of the asshole that made a profit off of me.

This leads to larger issues in our society. Today, it is all about the almighty dollar. Nothing else matters. It makes me sick, and it is one of the many reasons I am leaving this country for good. The other reasons you ask?
1. the abhorrant consumer and material culture - buy, buy, buy, all to build a fake image. Burn down the malls!!
2. Facebook/myspace. our lives have become virtual. We care more about how we portray ourselves on these stupid sites than who we really are. Disgusting. It is more important to us how many friends we have in a fake world than in real life.
3. Republicans.
4. Celebrity worship. Are we that pathetic that we need to follow every move that a celebrity makes. Get a life!
5. Intellectual laziness (e.g. screaming Socialism when you don't know what it means - 9/10 people who shout it freely). It is running rampant. Turn off the TV and get involved!
6. Our false sense of American Exceptionalism. Wake the fuck up. Big guns and a thriving (yet talentless) entertainment industry do not make a nation great.

TURN OFF THE DAMN TV!!!!

Not to mention, the promotion of inconceivable lifestyles that are portrayed to be the norm. I'm so glad to see that there are actually other people out there aware of all this bullshit. Unfortunately, we are the minority.

Cosmo

whygohome wrote:

I wanted to go to the show, and those were the only tickets I could get. read a statement, then give it some thought. It is the principle that some jerkass wanted to make money off of a PJ show. TO me, a cursed idealist, that is wrong and disgusting. maybe if it was a Jay Z show, where it is all about bling and cash, it would make sense. But not PJ, please not PJ

...
Still... you CHOSE to pay the $200.00 profit to the scalper (Fan Club member or not). The profit he made... came out of YOUR POCKET. The scalper didn't make the profit from Pearl Jam or the Ten/VHC... he made it off of you... by your own choosing.
If you feed the scalper... you are part of the problem. They would cease to exist if there was nothing to make from it.

Cosmo

whygohome wrote:

And again, the dude that sold me the tickets was a Ten Club member, and I didn't appreciate the fact that he wanted to make a quick buck. It just didn't sit well with me especially since it was for a PJ show.

...
Didn't this mean you had to sit next to this guy all night? Or did he sell both tickets and you sat next to another person who was out 200 bucks?

Jurassic Marc

whygohome wrote:

And to ML181059, I would love to hear what exactly sickened you. The 6 things I posted are grounded in fact. Look around at the changes (not for the better) in this country.

That your complaining. Its not like any of these things mentioned are causing physical harm to you, its easy to live and value what your choose to value and also to surround yourself with others that value the same things. I like this country, thats all. Arn't we supposed to be talking about Pearl Jam?

RustyShackelford

I agree with ML181059 and everything he has posted in this thread.

Thank you, Make it a great day!

Oh...I am a Republican...Where should I report to be burned at the stake?

cippociappo

For the most part, I agree with the OP.

...but I have to say this: many of the problems that you point out, unfortunately, are not present solely in the US (some may be just BIGGER in the US) - I moved to the US a few yars ago, so I can only compare it to my country

spree

pearl jam should do ticket sales the way the grateful dead used to do it; mail order. you would send in your check and request of shows and you would get what you got or you would get your check returned. the scalpers didn't like that method and it worked. pearl jam needs to start playing stadiums and stop with these tiny 20,000 seat intimate shows!!! WE WANT TO SEE YOU PLAY NOT STRESS OVER TICKETS!!!!!!

whygohome

Cosmo, Cosmo, Cosmo, you are way off. First, no I didn't sit next to him. He wasn't there. Second....I can't even respond......yours was a silly post.

fox_mulderX

hate to break it to you, but leaving the united states isn't going to solve your problem. unless you actually plan on getting into politics and changing the system from the inside there's no point to complaining. it's easy to point out faults, but ranting on here isn't going to help your cause.

whygohome

ML181059 wrote:

whygohome wrote:

And to ML181059, I would love to hear what exactly sickened you. The 6 things I posted are grounded in fact. Look around at the changes (not for the better) in this country.

That your complaining. Its not like any of these things mentioned are causing physical harm to you, its easy to live and value what your choose to value and also to surround yourself with others that value the same things. I like this country, thats all. Arn't we supposed to be talking about Pearl Jam?

Couldn't disagree more. Just because these issues aren't causing me physical harm (a silly statement) doesn't mean that I should not desire to detach myself from them, and a society that perpetuates their importance.
As far as surrounding myself with people who value the same things, I have done that, and I am not the only one who feels the way that I do.

To RustyShackleford: Unfortunately, I feel that the republicans (mainly in D.C.) embody a society that I disagree with - one grounded in greed, consumerism, and false beliefs in social darwinism. I am not saying burn them at the stake, I am, however, saying they are to blame for many things i oppose in this society.

To LittleItaly: Thanks, and we indeed are in the minority.

Cosmo

whygohome wrote:

Cosmo, Cosmo, Cosmo, you are way off. First, no I didn't sit next to him. He wasn't there. Second....I can't even respond......yours was a silly post.

...
So... who sat next to you? Ten/VHC tickets are sold only in pairs. How were the seats? Ten/VHC caliber?
And you cannot respond because you feel it is silly of me to place the responsibility squarely upon your shoulders?
...
I'm only addressing the portion of your text regarding you deciding to pay a scalper... not all of that social injustice stuff. See me on the moving Train for that.

Jurassic Marc

whygohome wrote:

ML181059 wrote:

whygohome wrote:

And to ML181059, I would love to hear what exactly sickened you. The 6 things I posted are grounded in fact. Look around at the changes (not for the better) in this country.

That your complaining. Its not like any of these things mentioned are causing physical harm to you, its easy to live and value what your choose to value and also to surround yourself with others that value the same things. I like this country, thats all. Arn't we supposed to be talking about Pearl Jam?

Then detach my friend, detach. If you actually do that then what the majority of people think or do shouldnt matter much. None of the mentioned issues are keeping you from acting how you want to act.

whygohome

fox_mulderX wrote:

hate to break it to you, but leaving the united states isn't going to solve your problem. unless you actually plan on getting into politics and changing the system from the inside there's no point to complaining. it's easy to point out faults, but ranting on here isn't going to help your cause.

Mulder:
I am very active in the community, and I am flirting with the idea of getting into politics - after I complete my PhD, I might go after a JD. However, I find myself at odds with American society, and I feel that there is no way to stop this speeding train of consumerism (read Andrew Bacevich's The Limits of Power), greed, materialism, and intellectual laziness.
I consider myself an environmentalist and I do a lot of volunteer work with the Sierra Club, ASPCA, and the local chapter of the Humane Society. I will continue to exhaust myself as I fight for the environment and animal rights.

So I am not only ranting on this forum. Thanks.

Cosmo: the seat next to me was empty. That's all I know. And, I bought these tickets because I wanted to go to a damn concert. It was either that or don't go. My options are limited. I went to Europe last year and I had to pay all the b.s. fees charged by the airlines (baggage costs, etc.) because it was either that or don't go. And, their are many other examples. This is what our capitalist system has turned into: a way to trap the citizens into doing whatever the corporations want them to do, no matter how unethical it may be.

ML181059: to quote you "Then detach my friend, detach. If you actually do that then what the majority of people think or do shouldnt matter much. None of the mentioned issues are keeping you from acting how you want to act."
You just continue to miss the point. I know I can "act how I want to act" but since when is it a bad thing to be concerned about American society? I study it, observe it, and write about it because I care. My 15-20 hours of volunteer work is not for self gratification. What concerns me the most is to see society regressing in many aspects. Refer to my original post to see what a few of those are.

Spree: I dig what you are saying

doompony

i feel your pain. those hi-tech doohickeys that scam the ticketing websites make me sick. i remember lining up - the good old days - and walking away with a ticket in your hand.

sigh.

but, i mean, i live in nz - pretty far removed from the US - and we have ticket scalping scum here too. getting tix to the recent pixies shows was near impossible for most people. and pj gig in auckland.. those fixer tickets were gone in seconds. somethin' aint right.

Cosmo

whygohome wrote:

Cosmo: the seat next to me was empty. That's all I know. And, I bought these tickets because I wanted to go to a damn concert. It was either that or don't go. My options are limited. I went to Europe last year and I had to pay all the b.s. fees charged by the airlines (baggage costs, etc.) because it was either that or don't go. And, their are many other examples. This is what our capitalist system has turned into: a way to trap the citizens into doing whatever the corporations want them to do, no matter how unethical it may be.

...
The system exists as long as people buy into it. My point being, you buy into the scalping system by participating in it. You DO have other alternatives, one of them being, choosing not to participate.
There are many alternatives to being part of the scalping problem... find a fan who's buddy flaked on them (there are millions of flakes in the country), most fans are willing to break even and not be forced to eat the spare ticket. I gave away an extra ticket I had for the rare Santa Barbara 2003 gig to the person in the last seat in the last row of the venue. The Pearl Jam community is filled with selfless, generous, giving people. But, if you expect a front section seat... that's on YOU.
The venues usually release unused tickets at showtime... typically in the band's friend/family and crew section and/or comped tickets that are no-shows. Those go for face value, no fees. I got into the Pearl Jam Fonda gig for free... along with about 100 other fans because the guest listers failed to show. Got into the Foo Fighters record release for the 20 dollar face value cost for the same reason. I went up to see 'Sunny Day Real Estate' without a ticket and refused to pay the scalper dime one. I was the only one outside the venue and he offered it for 20 bucks (5 under face val) before he decide to finally leave... and I said, 'No', because i wanted that asshole to eat that ticket. I ended up getting in through the back door when a road crew member gave me a pass. Got to hang backstage with Dave Grohl and Taylor Hawkins and eat free food and drink free beer.
My point is... you cannot complain about something you knowingly and willingly choose to do. I hate scalpers... so, I never pay them. If it means I spend the evening outside the venue... so be it. It's not that big of a deal... my body parts are still where they're supposed to be and my blood is still inside me. No one dies because i miss a gig... no one goes hungry, either. Concerts are wants, not needs.
But, that's just silly me... i suppose.

fox_mulderX

sorry man
but all i'm seeing by you posting on here and "flirting" with ideas is intellectual laziness.
you seem smart though

whygohome

Cosmo and Mulder:
Again you are both simply missing the point. Cosmo, the Philly incident was me needing tix at the last minute. Step away from the specifics of that incident and see what I am saying about the industry, and people I suppose, as a whole. And, I doubt I would have been able to sneak into the Vet. My problem is with the industry. Also, this dude, although he was scalping, wasn't a scalper, he was a PJ fan and 10c member (or so he said). Please get the point.
Mulder: How can you say someone who uses his time to volunteer for causes he believes in (as opposed to being a selfish, greedy pig who sits in front of the boob tube), and who is putting himself through a PhD program in order to better society, intellectually lazy? That's absurd! Seriously, you're way off and rather insulting.

Cosmo

whygohome wrote:

Again you are both simply missing the point. Cosmo, the Philly incident was me needing tix at the last minute. Step away from the specifics of that incident and see what I am saying about the industry, and people I suppose, as a whole. And, I doubt I would have been able to sneak into the Vet. My problem is with the industry. Also, this dude, although he was scalping, wasn't a scalper, he was a PJ fan and 10c member (or so he said). Please get the point.

...
No... I understand your point about the corporations and the Facebook and all of that...
But, you cannot deny the fact that it was YOUR choice to pay 200 dollars over face value for that ticket. You could have passed... but you CHOSE not to. You are just as much responsible for paying as his for selling.
Then, you complain about what a dick this guy was... which is probably true. But, you did choose to participate in the transaction with this dick because of your WANT... it was not a NEED.
Again, my point being... you cannot complain about something you willingly support. Suppport by participation... even though you oppose on moral, financial or other grounds.
...
As for the Industry... yeah, i get that. TicketMaster, fees, service charges... yes, I understand that. We have no choice but to deal with the ticket distribution and TicketMaster and there is not muuch we can do about that... I get that. It's the part where you pay 200 bucks over face value that keeps people, such as scalpers, in the business of coming up ways to cheat the Ticketmaster distribution system to gain possession of tickets to sell to people for 200 dollars over face value. You are a part of that system as a buyer and you can do something about it by choosing NOT to participate in it. It may require sacrifice... which I have had to do on some ocasions... but, it is your choice.
Bottom line... no buyers means no scalpers.

fox_mulderX

dude i don't even know why you're responding to me. i'm bored and just trying to get a rise out of you.

Boxes&Books

There are some kids in Haiti who feel your pain, and are sympathetic with your situation. They can't believe that you had to waste over 7hrs of your day trying to get PJ tickets. They feel your pain and wish they could do something to help you get some tickets.

I agree PBS does rule....