The subject I wanted to address was one of those exposé documentary programmes that I felt affected me. Seeing as my life these days is getting tickets for decent live events for friends and I, I was rather perturbed watching 'The Great Ticketing Scandal' about how promoters and venues allocate a massive amount of tickets to online resellers,
then the resellers (like viagogo
or seatwave)
sell the tickets on the secondary market for a much higher price than the face value of the ticket and they share the revenue 90:10 in favour of the promoter. The online reseller makes a fortune from the increased volume of transaction fees and in extreme cases buy whatever tickets they can get because more often than not they can turn a profit. It is basically organised touting without standing around outside a venue intimidating people. I wouldn't want to overreact here but BASTARDS. I am grateful to the Disability Discrimination act (DDA)which gives people like me a chance to go to these things, a lot of cost must be taken on by venues to make sure that disabled people are catered for which is a huge quality of life issue for me but there is a but.
Ever wondered how an event is reported to sell out in two minutes? Well promoters never actually putting the tickets on sale and being dodgy
(as I explained) is how and I am incandescent, given that my disability makes it nigh impossible to get in front of a computer or a phone at the exact time tickets go onsale, nevermind that able bodied people have been lied to, I'm pretty sure disabled people are being discriminated against. Disingenuous and sharp practice wind me right up and as someone whose life is going to these things and as I spend a disproportionate amount (that would almost certainly be better spent elsewhere), it is a scandal. I've forgotten most of my university economics but the welfare loss to society is surely high enough to get this regulated? I know I'm trying to make this less boring but that's the right language.
Anyway, having Gary and Gwen living here is such a help. They look after everything properly and I think they like living here (I think, I hope). I am still sorting out my birthday which is the stress at the moment but it's gotta be done as it's a big event for me. Having to have these medical procedures at the end of March is never too far from my thoughts, the most prevalent being 'I haven't gone through more than six years of this shit for it to go wrong now'. I better make a will though. That won't be a weighty tome.
I also want to offer my profoundest thanks to some new mates who make the effort to stay in touch with me – first there is Jo who took me to lunch at the bear yesterday, she has got over being ill and had some rather good news which is brilliant. Secondly there is my mate Isabel, who along with her hilarious son Kevin took me for dinner at one of my favourite local restaurants, 'The Loch Fyne' in Cobham. Isabel has been a bit of a hero in the last few weeks, making me food, when I had no assistance. It has kept me alive. It is people like this (and a select few others) that make my life worth living. They see past the odd sounding, funny looking person in the wheelchair.
On a related note My mate Nick, along with his wife Sally took me to the Loch Fyne (the restaurant last night) a few months ago can't see what all the fuss is about – 'it serves pretty good fish surrounded by daily mail readers' – this may be true and I won't condone the Mail's inflammatory journalism but it's unlikely to kick off in there tonight which suits my conservative with a small c politics. Perhaps if I wear the t-shirt that Jo got me for my birthday
or one of my other old favourites
thing's would have been a bit different.
Anyway, I'll leave you with a copy of Seatwave's attempt to diffuse this. Typical, caught red-handed but they still think they've done nothing wrong. The 'Catholic Church defense'
