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Content Created: July, 1999 / Updated: October 9, 2001
This section is devoted to opinion pieces. There's not really much else to say to preface it, other than that I don't mind people disagreeing with me, I'm not all-knowing.
If you disagree with anything here, feel free to exercise your First Amendment right to respond, since I'm certainly using mine....
Ticketmaster.
Blech.
I'm fed up with them. But, unfortunately, since they're just about a monopoly, I can't stop using them. (Not that I go to all that many sporting events or concerts anyway.)
For those who are not familiar with them, Ticketmaster is a company that sells tickets - to sporting events, concerts, and the like. They have locations all over the place, and I think that it may be that way across the US. So they're fairly convenient. You can go in there and their networked computer system will automatically figure out the best available seat for you (or so they claim), and print your ticket. Or they have a phone-in service, that melts the phone system whenever a hot concert goes on sale.
Sure, they're convenient, but they're so expensive. For example: I go in to get a ticket for an upcoming concert. I know ahead of time that the cost is $22.50, since that's what's been advertised on the radio. Knowing Ticketmaster (but not having actualy gotten tickets for a while), I expect a couple dollars in a surcharge. (And I specifically buy the tickets in person, to reduce the charges.) But wait, the charge is $4. And that's per ticket. If I had gone through the phone system, they would have added on several dollars in mailing fee. Oh yes, and they don't accept credit cards, which I could accept as a valid reason to have a small surcharge. [2] But $4 on each and every ticket, even when one buys six at a time? Having the clerk do six is not much more troubling than doing one. That adds almost 18% on to the price of my ticket. (I'm sure that the charge varies for each ticket.) And then there's the gall to call it a "Convenience Charge". Yes, it's more convenient than driving 20 miles out of my way to the venue to buy tickets, but...
[2] Credit cards charge the merchant accepting them a certain fee for each transaction, including a small percentage of the total. (This varies per credit card.) This is partly why smaller stores don't like to accept credit cards. (And why sometimes you'll run across a discount for using cash instead of credit cards.) So, if you like your local comic store (for example), try to pay by cash or check to save them some money. If you don't like them, go right ahead and charge away!
The problem, of course, is that Ticketmaster is a nigh-monopoly. The only other place to buy tickets for most things is at the venue, which is often inconvenient to get to, especially on the Saturday mornings that the hot tickets go on sale. (When you'd have to camp out overnight to get a good enough place in line....) So phoning in orders (or showing up at a nearby Ticketmaster office) is a lot more convenient for the average person. And Ticketmaster proceeds to ream them for all its worth.
::sigh::
I recently attended a convention with the Lois McMaster Bujold as the author Guest of Honor. (I also was at one last spring, which was the impetus for actually reading one of her books.) She's quite a good SF author. although I wouldn't put her in the same class as Heinlein. (Her works don't seem to have as much... depth?) She certainly has been raking in the awards recently, including several Hugos and Nebulas.
I'd say that Bujold's books are like popcorn; compelling, as in hard to put down, but they don't have that much substance behind them. They do have some, but not as much as say, Robert Heinlein or Sir Arthur C. Clarke. They're like Anne McCaffrey or David Eddings (or indeed, E. E. "Doc" Smith) in that regard, but not nearly as depth-free as them. (And yes, I like all those authors, so I'm not really putting them down.)
Of course, in talking with her (or more correctly listening to others talk with her at Q&A sessions), I see why she's a writer and not a (say) actress. Generally, in the couple years I've been going to SF cons, I've seen that the media guests (actors and producers, and the like) are much more personable than the authors. (The most personable author I've seen has been Joel Rosenberg, who's quite a cool guy.) Bujold, while not an overly exciting guest, did have some interesting anecdotes, like the atrocities that a screewriter heaped upon The Warrior's Apprentice. (Fortunately, the option expired before this script that had little to do with the book was filmed.)
So, if you're looking for some good stuff to read, try some Bujold. DOn't be put off with my rants above, the books are quite good, just not filling. 
One of my Christmas presents was the new collection from Alabama, For the Record. I'm been a country music fan (gasp!) for quite a while.[1] But I've never really gotten into Alabama specifically. Listening to this set, which contains all 41 of Alabama's #1 songs (one of three new songs on the set has gone #1, so it's 42 now. ), I realized that there are a lot of songs that I liked, that turn out to be Alabama. This is one good band, which only makes sense since they have been together for almost 20 years, putting out new albums with new hits every year or two. No one, not Elvis, not the Beatles, have as many #1s as Alabama, I'm told, and while you hear about other, older bands, they have big holes of time when they quit for a while. Meanwhile, Alabama has been pumping out good, wholesome music for a long time. I'll have to get a few other albums, because there are other songs I remember liking that apparently didn't make it to #1.
So, if you like good music that doesn't swear at you and try to convince you that violence is the answer, try Alabama's For the Record.
[1] Mainly because I consider the most important part of a song to be the words, and country is the main genre that has recognizable lyrics. (And also have some meat to them.) But, yes, I do have other favorites outside of country, primarily "Weird Al" Yankovic, but also including Enya, Loreena McKennitt, Amy Grant and Mariah Carey's older stuff. Of course, filk (science fiction-themed music usually played at SF cons) is also in there as well. (Take a trip over to my Favorite Things page to see more info about filk.) Yes, Enya and McKennitt don't usually have especially understandable lyrics. My desire for good lyrics is only a general rule, and instrumental-heavy music is good for certain moods. Some older rock that I've heard (like the Monkees) I like, as it's surprisingly close to today's country music. (Current country stars' influences often being those rock groups...) What I've heard of today's rock, alternative and metal music leaves me cold because I dislike being screamed at.
Opinion
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