No one need fool themselves in to thinking this is just about unity and peace, love and understanding. We are, afterall, business people. Not ravers.

(Are there still ravers, btw? Or did that die off in the 90s? Anyways...)

Everyone's entitled to do business for sake of business alone.

The catch, in this situation though, is that the business IS community and unity.

Read any press release about a convention/show and read any bit of copy on any show website. The organizers bill them as being about unity, community, and bringing people together for the betterment of all.

In the case of conventions and shows, community is the product. It's what is being promised and what should then be delivered.

So, I think when you're going to organize a convention and try and tell the attendees it's for their own sake you're organizing it and for their benefit you're putting it all together and that you're nearly providing a public service, then the standards you're held to are different from those of the cutthroat business hawk.

If you're just out there to make a profit and ruthlessly use the gay webmaster community to boost your bottom line and that's the defense you're going to use, then cut out the fluff in your press releases and all your promotional and marketing material when you say the show "will allow the industry to better facilitate and grow their businesses at strategic times during the year. or creates the best partnership for our show and for the webmaster community.

When community and service ARE the product you're offering then it looks a tad bit odd when you're fracturing the community and denying service in the manner you go about conducting business.