[MR] Pennsic Bureaucracy

[Judithsca at aol.com]

Lord Lyon comments:

<<Take care of your street or your block or your
tribe but by all that is holy DON'T beg for MORE Pennsic bureaucracy!!>>

I have to agree, Pennsic is already about as bureaucratic as France at the end of the seventeenth century--- or France of the modern day, even, which is pretty bad.
    I have noticed this disturbing trend that this seems to increase every year.  But another disturbing trend, it seems to me, is that *we", the members of the SCA, have less and less a role in the running of Pennsic, and that the prices have been steadily inceasing as the years have gone on, without an increase in services or facilities.  What is also sort of sad is that, with all the money that pennsic makes, no site improvements have been made that could add very nicely to a medieval atmosphere (wooden barrels instead of the plastic trash cans, for example; wooden fencing instead of the lovely orange mesh they string up every year).  Also, that lovely bit of "paid" parking and RV parking that makes the battlefield just such a lovely view--- just to increase event profits. The ratio of non-SCA participants has also been increasing, which has, I think, proved detrimental to the atmosphere of the event.  (Hard to pretend we are living in a pre-17th c. culture when, in one ten minute period, one passes four women in nothing but a transparent and a late victorian corset, with hair coloured some exceedingly unnatural hue...)
     One thought, as far as the non-SCA partiers goes, was to mandate paid SCA membership to get into the event, which would eliminate many of the casual, fraternity style partiers who come to the event and wander around in white sneakers, jeans, and a t-shirt with maybe a tabard over it.
   Am I the only one who feels this way?  Is there anything that can be done, does anyone think?  Am I the only one who would like to see something changed?

I might be opening a can of worms with this, but maybe a dialogue, even a heated one, could lead to improvements...

J