CROWD CONTROL

 This last few weeks, several friends wondered why I don’t go to Pride and why I don’t go to see the 4th of July fireworks shows. After all, Pride is a big part of my life, and the fireworks are something everyone likes, pretty-much. The reason for this is that I am repelled by the kind of massive crowds that flock to these events. WHY???

The following may not make me appear to be a good person, as it could be seen as if I’m arrogant or thing I’m better than everyone else. The thing about crowds is that when I look at the crowds that flood many public events, or even think about them, it makes me sick. Event organizers treat their “customers” (even if those are not paying customers) like animals. If people need to get-in or get tickets, they will almost always under-staff the entry doors and ticket booths, leading to creation of endless lines. Such lines are often in the blistering sun, freezing cold, and even pouring rain, with little or no cover. If concessions are available, they will universally be overpriced by hundreds of percent (like how Disney parks sell a hot dog for $11, which is approximately 2700% profit). At things like concerts, patrons are charged hundreds of dollars per ticket, but the organizers won’t invest in a comfortable experience, so people sit in plastic chairs or on concrete slabs, compressed like sardines so they can sell more tickets. At these concerts, most audience members are so far from the stage that the performers are not more than colored dots in the distance and the patrons end up watching the show on big screens. On airplanes, the airlines find new ways to cut conditions every year. Every year, they shrink the seats more so they can compress more people on each plane, and now almost all airlines charge extra money for anything, from watching a movie to a blanket.

The problem on the other side is that we people just suck it up. No matter how poorly airlines treat us, we still flood the airports by the millions. No matter how poorly concert halls and showrooms treat us, we are still lining up for hours to spend $600 or even more on a single ticket to a show like the Grateful dead. Even if the newest iphone offers almost no improvement over last year’s model, we still crowd the stores and feel delighted Apple agreed to take $1200 for a new device (plus more for a charger, because that’s no longer free either). Each person has their reasons. For some, it’s gullibility. For others, it’s a type of masochism. For yet others it’s low self-esteem. Whatever the reason is, when I see this herd mentality, it disgusts me. Seeing all these people willing to take it up the ass, I would feel humiliated to be a part of it and let those unscrupulous and greedy organizers take advantage of me.

Does that make me elitist? In a way, it does, because I do see the willing-victims as weak or stupid, and I have a strong desire not to be a part of “them”. I do think that by avoiding participating in this, it makes me smarter, just like avoiding getting scammed by scammers online makes me smarter. Does thinking I’m smarter or trying to be one makes me a bad person? You decide…