Duckon

[ericcoleman]

I suppose I have to put forward my thoughts on Duckon.

I got there late, so some of this is what I heard, not what I saw. My final conclusions are my opinions, not of anyone else.

First of all the Dandelion Wine CD release party. From what I heard, this was cleared with the concom. The concom came and shut it down.

The wife of next years con chair came out of the main room and told Megan that she had the right to tell Jan to go fuck herself and was going to tell other concom members that they had her permission to do so. This in a public space.

None of the folks who Jan had arranged to have badges had badges. When I got there on Saturday this was still not straightened out. I know Jan, she gets her info in early.

For the record, I also made Megan cry, this when one of her staff was doing the worst job of running sound I have ever seen at a con, this the day after all of the sound issues were solved. I had watched poor Scott Snyder struggle through a set, little did he know that the sound guy was doing is best to make sure that he sounded even worse than he did (he had throat problems). The idgit was mixing the sound by sitting 10 feet in front of one of the PA speakers. It sounded fine where he was, it sounded like crap everywhere else in the room. When it was obvious that this was going to be the case for Talis (the big name filker from the UK) I spoke up ... fervently (you all know how I can be), and the guy finally did a half way decent job. Halfway. I am by no means a professional sound guy, but I could have solved any of the problems they were having at that moment in a verse and a chorus. This guy simply didn't want to. He also talked on his cel phone, and at one point in Talis's concert carried on a full voice conversation 15 feet from her. At that point I snapped and got Megan's attention and mouthed at her to tell him to SHUT THE FUCK UP. She told him (a little more politely I would guess) and he came over to me all pumped up and said, in a nice macho aggressive way "IS THERE A PROBLEM". "Yeah, you are talking during someone's show, it's rude". Since it was obvious that I was not afraid of him, he walked away.

After that show Megan took me and Gundo aside and told us that the powers that be had told her that Toyboat was to have no sound support, this for an electric band. She told us that she was going to do it anyway.

I'd like to say for the record that I think Megan did the best she could, but that she was thrown into the deep end with no way of getting out. I feel terrible for her. She's a long standing member of the WSPA and one of "my kids". I think the way she was treated was shameful. But not the way she was treated by Jan, that was just Jan's natural frustration at the behaviour of the concom. Unfortunately Megan got the brunt of it.

Now for my opinions on this ...

Now the concom is doing it's best to make Jan look bad, to save their asses. Filk was a target that weekend. Jan had a lot of power, and that had been upsetting some of the folks on the concom. They took a bad moment and used it to get rid of her, but if you look at what happened that weekend, it is Jan who is owed an apology.

As for the future of Duckon filk. It's dead kids, you killed it. I feel bad for Gary, FINALLY a GOH next year (bout time that a major con did this, he's brilliant), but who is going to be there to see him. There is no major filker who will touch Duckon now and there is no one who could bring anyone in who will take the job. The word is already going through the community that one of the most beloved figures in the community was treated abysmally. And she was.

Comments

[lisagems.livejournal.com]

This problem is not new to the current "ruling bodies". It has been endemic to Duckon. Whoever has been in charge seems to take delight in pissing in the pool. Or at least, pissing on whatever group has drawn their specific disdain. I keep seeing people talk about how much they dislike how things are happening, say "when I'm in charge, it will be different", then pull exactly the same crap, just aimed at a different group. For a convention that isn't really very old, this has happened too many times.

[gundo.livejournal.com]

The problem with pissing on the filk track is that it had *international* renown...and now people from as far away as England have crossed it on their list. I know of at least two people from several states away who were going to come next year but have changed their mind now that this has happened.

[lisagems.livejournal.com]

Exactly the same as the Furry track. When furries were booted out of Duckon, they accounted for nearly 45% of con attendees. And the "Person's In Charge At The Time" seemed to believe that most of those people would still come back to Duckon even though their track had been evicted, they had treated like unwanted, but revenue generating, foster children, and had been pretty viciously bad mouthed.

The "PICNATT" were shocked, shocked I tell you, at the marked drop in con attendance. Then quietly began courting the furries back.

It will play out exactly the same what. Next year, if there is a filk track, it will be a sad, unhealthy thing. The people who come to Duckon because they used to be able to hear and sing/play with musicians from everywhere will stay away/go to other cons. The powers that be will be "shocked and hurt" that everyone misunderstood them so badly. And the quiet courting will begin again.

Again.

[tigertoy.livejournal.com]

When furries were booted out of Duckon

I am always clueless to an amazing extent, and I have a lousy memory, but I thought that the furries left on their own, rather than being driven out. The few who were present this year told it that way. Part of what I loved about DucKon was that everyone seemed to be welcome, even groups that other cons disparage. Frankly, I was proud that my favorite con had been home to furries before they got their own con. It would pain me to have to reassess that.

[dave-ifversen.livejournal.com]

The furries were actually already planning on starting their own con (since the track had grown so big), but concom politics ended up making them move that schedule up by a year.

[kyril.livejournal.com]

And now perhaps filk will start its own con, or has already done so. Open Source Software isn't the only realm where projects can fork...

[lisagems.livejournal.com]

Time to reassess. The PICATT were extremely hostile to the furries, and made life as difficult as possible for the people trying to run the furry track. It's true that the community had reached a point where it could support an independent convention, and MFF probably would have gotten off the ground in another year or so, but it started when it did because of the hostility toward them at Duck.

[tarkrai.livejournal.com]

... and it will probably work.

Again. Thereby strengthening and lengthening the cycle.

After the rhetoric and tempers cool, people start to realize that universal truth- when stuff like this goes down- *everyone* loses.

*The con: A significant chunk of attendees- that essential thing that makes a con run in the first place- choose to do something else.

*Filkers: lose a space for us to meet and have community. BY OUR OWN CHOICE of trying to piss in the con's pot.

The only way I know of making a 'nuke from orbit' situation like this come out in *any* sort of positive way in the end is to follow the Minicon model: go start another con. And if you're *really* PO'd, do it at the same time as the established con and watch *both* suffer...

*sigh* Fact of the matter is, this is what happens when fans tend to get too self-important.

[ericcoleman]

Jan can be arrogant (sorry darlin, it's true) but I really don't think that that was the over all issue. It's a couple people power tripping. They couldn't control Jan, so they eliminated her. This was the intention going in and she got angry and gave them the excuse to do it.

As for a new con, it's already in the works and year 0 is in a month. musecon.org. We'll see what happens with it.

[tarkrai.livejournal.com]

Actually, I wasn't referring to Jan. :)

I was referring more to the "we'll take our marbles elsewhere" mentality I see.

Summarized- "When fans get too self-important, the cons, as well as the communities they support, suffer." In this respect, I don't count Jan. Yes, she can be rather pushy- but I've never seen it from her to put herself high. More, I've seen it from her to promote that which she truly loves.

Guido said it well else-thread: You can't treat volunteer organizations the same way as for-profit businesses.

OTOH, (and this is my own fault for not checking the website); it's good to know that Musecon is ready to step in.

[lisagems.livejournal.com]

But, remember, the furries weren't exactly give a choice about taking their marbles elsewhere. They were told their programming track was no longer welcome, but the PTB still expected them to attend the con.

Too arrogant.

I, unfortunately, have seen Jan pull BNF "I'm doing what I want" stunts. My reaction was basically, 'I can see why you might think that's appropriate, but here's what's really going to happen and why.' I got a mulish look with the 'what's really going to happen', and then a startled look and cooperation with the 'why'.

Which is why I believe if anybody had ever dealt with her in a reasonable way. Being firm about what was going to be done, while also giving her the reasons behind it, much of this drama could have been avoided.

New con

[billroper]

Already done.

See, wasn't that simple?

(Actually, this was the fallout from last year's committee purge. A good piece of fallout, I think.)

Re: New con

[katyhh.livejournal.com]

Wow. Cool! Hmmm. Now I want to go. Sigh :)

Re: New con

[allisona.livejournal.com]

Me, too! (though I fear I can't this year...)

What an amazing concept for a con!!

(Loving the craft and technical workshops as much as the music!)

I want to make a blinkie!

Re: New con

[gundo.livejournal.com]

Next year the music track is going to have a "how to build your own slide guitar out of a 2x4" hands on workshop. This year we're handing out harmonicas and all learning how to play them together.

Re: New con

[billroper]

BTW, if you need me for any more programming this year, I'm game as long as it doesn't conflict with the harmonica workshop. (I have promised daisy_knotwise that she gets to go to the harmonica workshop while I watch Katie and Julie. :) )

Re: New con

[phuphuphnik.livejournal.com]

oh god oh god oh god

Re: New con

[allisona.livejournal.com]

Are you on the concom for MuseCon? I was telling my husband about it today, how it was this cool sf con for the arts with music, crafts, technology, etc. that's just starting up this year, and he wonders if you're ever going to consider any programming about the art of film-making. He's an sf fan and likes sf conventions and he's heavy into amateur film-making.

Re: New con

[gundo.livejournal.com]

I'm actually the head of the music track, so yeah, I'm in a position to make sure that we've got some great music in place :)

One thing that we're really trying to do is make the con *interactive*...if he's interested and would help us create panels, then we're into the art of film-making. That simple.

Re: New con

[dave-ifversen.livejournal.com]

There are a few of us interested in film-making (I'm currently working on a Star Wars Fan Film that my officemate is doing, called Star Wars Forgotten Realm). At some point, I was hoping to get some of the cast and crew to come in and talk about the various things we went through while making the movie (I don't know if I can pull it off this year or not). I was hoping that, rather than have a standard 'film room' like most SF cons, we would be able to give people interested in film-making a place to discuss the how and what of film-making and a place to show their finished films. The whole point is to bring people together to talk about the creative things they do, and to share that with others.

In addition to what <lj user=gundo> said...

[born-to-me.livejournal.com]

I'll be doing a Reiki I class this year (which I'll gladly do again next year if people are interested), as well as a very beginning polymer clay workshop. There will also be more advanced polymer clay classes, several kinds of needlework and all sorts of stuff. It's going to be very eclectic and -very- interesting.