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I co-founded Burning Man. The festival has lost its soul

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Re: I co-founded Burning Man. The festival has lost its soul

#111

Post by newsclues »

pstuart wrote: post #53
newsclues wrote: post #20

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That’s because it’s easier to recruit kids into cults or whatever

> That’s because it’s easier to recruit kids into cults or whatever That's what Sunday School is for. I lived in SF at the time of the original burns on Baker Beach and heard about them but I was too lame and isolated to ever participate but followed their antics (and the Cacophony Society) from afar. The universe arranged for me to go ten years ago and I found the experience magical. There's an exhibit that shows ho…

Or school, including university/college

Re: I co-founded Burning Man. The festival has lost its soul

#112

Post by arw0n »

dhosek wrote: post #88
cromka wrote: post #60

I have attended festivals for more than half of my life and they're all suspectable to the same gentrification problem as cool neighborhoods: fun/artsy people create fun environments, fun environments attract others who genuinely appreciate fun/artsy but are professionals themselves, professionals attract other professionals but shallower with more money. Or, in short, they get hugged to death. Rinse, repeat. Same th…

There was a sentence early on in the article, “San Francisco has always been a place people came to re-create themselves — running from something, running toward something exciting and unknown, going as far as they could for a shot at a new life.” although I think the tense there should probably be more “used to be” than “has always been” thanks to the same gentrification influence. I feel like much of California has…

> I wonder what the 2026 equivalent of going to California is now, if such a thing even exists or can exist.

I think this becomes increasingly difficult, because the timelines become so short with almost-instant information desimination, higher inequality and increased mobility for everyone. A place or event can go from underground -> awesome -> gentrified -> 'dead' in a manner of a couple of years now.

I live in a neighborhood that is currently being gentrified; 10 years ago no non-local wanted to live here, 5 years ago, it was the place to be, today young/hip people are beginning to move elsewhere again. Newly rented-out flats are now thrice as expensive as 2020, and you can see in real time how bars and restaurants are replaced with more expensive alternatives. When I compare this with other neighborhoods in Berlin (eg. Bergmannkiez or Kollwitzkiez), the timeline has roughly halfed.

Re: I co-founded Burning Man. The festival has lost its soul

#114

Post by adammarples »

dmkolobov wrote: post #65
chollida1 wrote: post #38

About 15 years ago it really started to get corporate. Big money came in and created camps with air conditioning, huge RV's no bartering, etc. Dustin Moskovitz and the like started going and wouldn't dare behave the ordinary peasants, by sleeping in tents, participating in the community, bartering for things. Heck Zuckerberg took a helicopter there one year. instead they just threw money at the event so they wouldn't…

I work at a financial company and around 2019, the break room had a magazine called “Meetings” with a front-page article about how burning man and sxsw are the next big thing in corporate culture.

Meetings magazine from 30 Rock is real

Re: I co-founded Burning Man. The festival has lost its soul

#115

Post by irthomasthomas »

dhosek wrote: post #88
cromka wrote: post #60

I have attended festivals for more than half of my life and they're all suspectable to the same gentrification problem as cool neighborhoods: fun/artsy people create fun environments, fun environments attract others who genuinely appreciate fun/artsy but are professionals themselves, professionals attract other professionals but shallower with more money. Or, in short, they get hugged to death. Rinse, repeat. Same th…

There was a sentence early on in the article, “San Francisco has always been a place people came to re-create themselves — running from something, running toward something exciting and unknown, going as far as they could for a shot at a new life.” although I think the tense there should probably be more “used to be” than “has always been” thanks to the same gentrification influence. I feel like much of California has…

That emdash followed by a list sets off my llm detector.

Re: I co-founded Burning Man. The festival has lost its soul

#117

Post by JKCalhoun »

cromka wrote: post #60

I have attended festivals for more than half of my life and they're all suspectable to the same gentrification problem as cool neighborhoods: fun/artsy people create fun environments, fun environments attract others who genuinely appreciate fun/artsy but are professionals themselves, professionals attract other professionals but shallower with more money. Or, in short, they get hugged to death. Rinse, repeat. Same th…

"…they're all suspectable (sic) to the same gentrification problem…"

That means they were on to something. Congratulations, success!

(Oh well.)

Re: I co-founded Burning Man. The festival has lost its soul

#118

Post by isubkhankulov »

davkan wrote: post #108
EPWN3D wrote: post #78

Earlier quoted context omitted.

300k is a huge amount of money if you have no dependents. Otherwise it's comfortably middle class, but that's it.

300k would put you in the top 5% of households and 3-4x the median household, let alone single earners. You are absolutely beyond “comfortably middle class” with that salary.

Where? Not in the Bay Area. $300k is middle class there.

Re: I co-founded Burning Man. The festival has lost its soul

#119

Post by c22 »

johnohara wrote: post #36

I don't understand how nostalgia can be applied to Burning Man. Outside of those few who dedicate themselves to the organization and administration of the event, each burning man is a unique assemblage of thousands of people, different in every way from one year to the next. Except perhaps the location. Without the different human beings who show up each year, the event would be nothing more than a dust bowl waiting…

It might be true technically, but I've been about a dozen times and in my memories of the place it can often be hard for me to determine which ones happened on which year.

Re: I co-founded Burning Man. The festival has lost its soul

#120

Post by gdilla »

dhosek wrote: post #88
cromka wrote: post #60

I have attended festivals for more than half of my life and they're all suspectable to the same gentrification problem as cool neighborhoods: fun/artsy people create fun environments, fun environments attract others who genuinely appreciate fun/artsy but are professionals themselves, professionals attract other professionals but shallower with more money. Or, in short, they get hugged to death. Rinse, repeat. Same th…

There was a sentence early on in the article, “San Francisco has always been a place people came to re-create themselves — running from something, running toward something exciting and unknown, going as far as they could for a shot at a new life.” although I think the tense there should probably be more “used to be” than “has always been” thanks to the same gentrification influence. I feel like much of California has…

This another way to say it's "played out". the thing is, whatever feels meh now is the next California, so it's never obvious. it starts small and gain momentum and network effects like a snowball rolling down a hill, with a chance or chances of getting stuck.
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