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> After hearing lots of old-timers talk about how Burning Man was in the 1990s But that's part of the meme, just as much as Burning Man's principles invite the

> After hearing lots of old-timers talk about how Burning Man was in the 1990s But that's part of the meme, just as much as Burning Man's principles invite the criticism The founding members weren't serious about "radical self reliance" as their congregation now repeats without practicing Its also more of a heroin hit for these people, the second hits will never be as good as the first, but its still the first hit for everyone else. The expense also invites the criticism, it is ironic and funny. Wage workers can't take a week and a half off for burning AND have another vacation somewhere else that year, and thats if they can rationalize the cost to begin with. So it invites quirky tech CEOs and socialites and DJs, along side the actual counterculture people who barely have a social security number. For a festival in an inhospitable environment that prides itself on decommodification, it is ALWAYS going to have criticism. SEE YA THERE! :D

timr 8y ago
"But that's part of the meme, just as much as Burning Man's principles invite the criticism" And so is this reply. Essentially any event that has substantially changed from its original form/intent has this conversational pattern: Old participant: "$event is past it's prime now." New participant: "Everyone says that, but $event is still popular, and I like it, so they're wrong." Of the two opinions, only the one from the old participant carries information about how things have changed. Whether this is relevant to a new participant is debatable, but it's certainly relevant to conversations where people try to sell a mass-market event as a niche experience.
- gammateam 8y ago
  yes and that's fine but lets look at the article itself: why is it even written? because it transformed to being more of “the hippest party around” instead of “true experiment in intentional creative community”, despite maintaining both of those experiences for everyone that attends? I casually hear all of the disdain towards the concept of burning man, and it mostly comes down to the contrived concept which themselves only stand out because of the costs necessary to get there this festival in particular invites it, and I enjoy the privilege of being able to go
Mediterraneo10 8y ago
> But that's part of the meme, just as much as Burning Man's principles invite the criticism Perhaps you misunderstand. I did not mean that those old-timers complained about Burning Man today and said it was passé. Some of them have not even gone again since that era two decades ago. But simply talking to a 1990s participant and a more recent participant about what they remember of the event reveals details of logistics, close-knitness, and interaction with the outside world that tell me that I would find the event much less enjoyable these days than if I had been able to participate in the 1990s.
- gammateam 8y ago
  I see Some of that crowd does to the area on the 4th of July week now. They say its more like how it used to be

timr 8y ago

"But that's part of the meme, just as much as Burning Man's principles invite the criticism" And so is this reply. Essentially any event that has substantially changed from its original form/intent has this conversational pattern: Old participant: "$event is past it's prime now." New participant: "Everyone says that, but $event is still popular, and I like it, so they're wrong." Of the two opinions, only the one from the old participant carries information about how things have changed. Whether this is relevant to a new participant is debatable, but it's certainly relevant to conversations where people try to sell a mass-market event as a niche experience.

gammateam 8y ago
yes and that's fine but lets look at the article itself: why is it even written? because it transformed to being more of “the hippest party around” instead of “true experiment in intentional creative community”, despite maintaining both of those experiences for everyone that attends? I casually hear all of the disdain towards the concept of burning man, and it mostly comes down to the contrived concept which themselves only stand out because of the costs necessary to get there this festival in particular invites it, and I enjoy the privilege of being able to go

Mediterraneo10 8y ago

> But that's part of the meme, just as much as Burning Man's principles invite the criticism Perhaps you misunderstand. I did not mean that those old-timers complained about Burning Man today and said it was passé. Some of them have not even gone again since that era two decades ago. But simply talking to a 1990s participant and a more recent participant about what they remember of the event reveals details of logistics, close-knitness, and interaction with the outside world that tell me that I would find the event much less enjoyable these days than if I had been able to participate in the 1990s.

gammateam 8y ago
I see Some of that crowd does to the area on the 4th of July week now. They say its more like how it used to be