Deluxe – that’s the new fanged phrasing for “first class” isn’t it...  Over a hundred years on from the Victorian age, and the class structure is still going good and strong - it must have made 'em proud: the system was, after all, built to last.  It’s amusing when even rock festivals – at one time at the forefront of the counterculture – now have special ”VIP areas” – right at the front, naturally, sealed off so that the hoipolloi can’t intermingle with all the top cats and dogs and contaminate 'em. 

I imagine “de luxe” ticket holders here would have got some extra nibbles beforehand, a spot of champers (or cava) maybe, perhaps a brief “meet and greet” with the speakers/ organizers or an exclusive bit of presentation – personal signed copies of the programme and all that malarkey.  Just to stroke your feathers and make you feel all special, like a king or queen.  Or a (super)star... 

(The rest of the hoipolloi, the common folk, can of course go and whistle...  How’s all that for a bit of timeless political controversy? ;D)

“♫ If I were a rich man, yubby dibby dibby dibby dibby dibby dibby dum - all day long, I’d biddy biddy bum…”
Norma N Joy Conquest

Have you ever been to the Esoteric Book Conference in Seattle, Jamie?

The deluxe tickets are for people who want the extras such as the Saturday night entertainment show. It's a commercial transaction - nothing to do with stroking feathers, making people feel special, etc. It's a way of pulling in extra revenue, and thus important for the organisers.

Having spoken at two of the Seattle conferences,  I had entry to the deluxe events but was elsewhere on both occasions. However, knowing the people who work hard to organise the Seattle conferences, I've no doubt that it would have been a good event.

If you don't want anything to do with such events, then that's fine. Not sure why you need to slag off those who do wish to participate, however. 

The deluxe tickets are for people who want the extras such as the Saturday night entertainment show. It's a commercial transaction - nothing to do with stroking feathers, making people feel special, etc. It's a way of pulling in extra revenue, and thus important for the organisers.

Should all that be included in the usual price?

In my view, it's rather an underhand way of extracting more money out of people.

There's nothing "underhand" about it, since it's clearly advertised and sold as an extra. Neither is it a case of "extracting more money out of people", since people have the clear choice of opting for the deluxe ticket or not.

Many people no doubt would prefer not to attend such an event; why then should everybody be charged for it in the ticket price, whether they wished to attend or not.

I don’t think I was “slagging” anyone off – that was not my intention and I don’t know why you should leap to that foregone conclusion.  Possibly you are more “sensitive” than some other readers might be, producing “de luxe” editions in Starfire as you do – but even if so, please don’t worry as no slighting of a slagging nature to “de luxers” – givers or receivers, least of all those participating at this Seattle event - was meant on my part; I was purely in an observational mode, and lacking this emotive input. 

If it wasn’t this though, I think you are rather making too much of my enquiry as to its continued ongoing prevalence, which was intended to be light-hearted rather than the sort of agitprop tub-thumping which you appear to misconstrue it for, and hence my jokey language, smiley emoticon and quote from Fiddler On The Roof, by the use of all of which I had hoped would prevent such a misinterpretation. 

Either way, if anyone was offended by it I apologize.

Man the Guillotines! and Up The Revolution !! (joke)
N Joy

Many people no doubt would prefer not to attend such an event; why then should everybody be charged for it in the ticket price, whether they wished to attend or not.

For me, there is nothing better than being able to access all areas, and discover things at my own pace (without having to worry about whether I have paid or not) even though, I might end-up not liking what I've have seen. To put an additional charge on something, in advance - before it is really clear what is on offer - is a practice all too disappointingly common.

I don't think I was alone, Jamie, in detecting a more sinister edge to your remarks, along the lines of "when I hear the words 'deluxe ticket holders', I reach for my revolver". Doubtless there'll be lots more of such sentiments come May, when we'll all be writhing under the jackboot of Red Ed (© Daily Mail 2010-2015), and when commissars such as yourself will feel emboldened to roam the streets, taking down deluxe ticket holders. Then again, I could be wrong.

lol people are amusing.

I just want to say I really want to go to the EBC since I talk about it a lot with JDH and to be totally PDQ about the whole thing I'm quite interested. TBH.

Sorry I was on a roll. but im still serious. but im always tongue in cheek. i think you know.
🙂
Would love to meet Lashtalians there. I almost said lash-stallions but im not really like that 😉
I am only really attracted by speakers I know, like who have written books I have read so sometimes I don't go because I don't know any of the people. But if you look at that decision in a music festival lens, thats a dumb decision on my part; because I discovered a lot of great bands without knowing who they were that way.
Ok ramble off.
'singin my song.
I gotta ramble on, I gotta find the queen of all my dreams'

If that's your worry, then I can put your mind at rest. Whenever I've attended the Seattle Conference, the deluxe event has always been in the evening (several hours after the last talk of the day) and in a different part of Seattle. Thus there would be no risk of a "senior moment" whereby you absent-mindedly wander into the wrong area.

I am less concerned about different styles and prices of tickets (which seem to be openly disclosed and, yes, obviously wringing an extra buck or euro or shekel out of the spectators), than about the Title of the event.

Breaking Down the Temple Door
Huh? ???

Is this like
Storming Heaven by Force
or
When the Babalonians Come Calling?

[/align:2ys85x3y]

The Tree of Life as a London tube map: brilliant!

Markus

was watching this now and i like richard, he knows his stuff; but im a bit sad no one tried to link the actual tube stations based on their subjective qualities 😛
where would kether be? paddington? Wellington? loll been too long for me.

ROFL super laughs at the magic missile part.  A lot of that audience must have been well, not there, or not very humourous.

2014 Lecture by Dr Richard Kaczynski introducing Aleister Crowley's The Rite of Mars for deluxe ticket holders to the 6th Annual Esoteric Book Conference in Seattle, Washington.

Ah, so when you get there, you find out that your bog-standard ticket won't actually allow you entry to any of the more interesting events. Ho hum.

The "more interesting events" at the Esoteric Book Conference are the talks, which are, y'know, the focus of the Conference. Anyone booking what you describe as "your bog-standard ticket" is well aware of what their ticket covers and what it doesn't.

"Ah, so when you get there, you find out that your bog-standard ticket won't actually allow you entry to any of the more interesting events. Ho hum."

Once Again, Mr. Clarke makes an issue out of something that he is not involved in.

FYI, the extra events are good for some people, and not good for others; I respect and appreciate the way that they are made optional. We attend the Esoteric Book Conference, and have done so for 5 out of the 6 conferences, missing only one when our daughter was in hospital being treated for brain cancer.

We always take our children, and as the extra events are in the evenings, and are not really kid-friendly (as in kids could hardly be expected to sit through them), we don't buy the deluxe tickets. It's a benefit to us in many ways.

Once Again, Mr. Clarke makes an issue out of something that he is not involved in.

Still sore about my comments on the other thread? Must be an awful shame for you, realizing that other people have opinions too.

It's funny how defensive people are getting over a conference, held in a fairly far-flung location - i.e. Seattle - which has no occult tradition, little occult significance and is both expensive and difficult to get to. Of all the places in the world to hold an esoteric conference, Seattle would not even make it into my list of 20, probably not even into my top 50.

Frankly, it seems to me, that the conference is pretty irrelevant in the wider occult related scheme of things with a fairly limited influence. No-one I know - with any interest in the occult - who has attended, has ever had anything particularly memorable to report - on that basis I've always chosen to give it a miss.

I've enjoyed the Conference very much on the three occasions I've been there. It's very well organised. The focus is not on the occult per se - the clue is in the title Esoteric Book Conference - so I doubt that they are that exercised as to how much influence they may or may not wield  in "the wider occult related scheme of things".

Contrary to your suggestion, I'm not getting defensive over the Conference. I'm simply taking issue with your negative, disparaging remarks.

I'm not getting defensive over the Conference. I'm simply taking issue with your negative, disparaging remarks.

With respect, seems a touch defensive to me.

I would suggest that if Mr. Clarke has something disparaging to say about something one could interpret that as a recommendation.

It's not that he operates in a negative reality.

He's just anti-positive.

On the other hand, seeing as how he has stated that he has no interest in the Esoteric Book Conference - or of ever visiting Seattle - one could take that as a blessing.

On the other hand, seeing as how he has stated that he has no interest in the Esoteric Book Conference - or of ever visiting Seattle - one could take that as a blessing.

Done. All yours.

Please excuse me for making an egregious error.

I must learn not to feed the troll.

Please excuse me for making an egregious error.

I must learn not to feed the troll.

Getting to you isn't it.

Has anyone seen that thread topic around here?

Enough, already!

Pow! Biff!  Kerblam!

Yes, this is what I call a bit of timeless political controversy ;D - with daggers drawn…

“Who do you think you’re calling a commissar?"  Bash!  " *£@#$ ! Fetch ma gun!  I wanna take someone down…”

Bang, Bang, Unnhhh (“That’s enough sound effects, Ed”)
N Joy