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TAM Australia

Good. So now we have established that affordability of a BMW is a valid comparison to affordability of attending TAM.

Please tell me you aren't serious.
 
lionking said:
Good. So now we have established that affordability of a BMW is a valid comparison to affordability of attending TAM.

Please tell me you aren't serious.
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Not everyone can afford everything. There are lot's of things in the world I can't afford, but I don't whine about it.

You can't seem to grasp the comparison. Please tell me you aren't serious.
 
I'll probably be going, but I can't afford a BMW.

Questioning the cost of something is whining? Well so be it. The knee jerk reaction of some to any questioning of JREF is really astounding.
 
DocM said:
I personally can live with the price, but I'm aware that for many people TAM is a luxury they cannot afford. So the question is if he JREF should make it a larger, more affordable event (at the risk of raising less funds), or if they should continue doing it the way they do and let events like Skeptics in the Pub do the low cost, grass roots events.
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Just listening to the guys that actually work at the JREF, such as DJ and Bart, the JREF wants to make TAM bigger. It's gone from under 100 people at the first TAM (IIRC) to over 1000 at TAM7, and has expanded to include two other countries. They are up against a situation of finding places that are large enough to accomodate the people, at this point. How awesome would it be to have thousands of people attend every year??

Not every hotel can handle over 1000 people, and the ones that can are usually the more expense hotels that regularly host conventions. If the net back to JREF is, say, $100 per person, if they lowered the price by $50, would that make it more affordable?

The JREF also has the cruises that are very much fund-raising events. The travel agent that coordinates them said the last cruise (AA4, to the Caribbean) said they picked the cheapest cruise line there was for that one, to drive the cost down.

But they are also starting workshops in various locations. They are free for JREF members and $45 for non-members. These must have some cost to the JREF - renting a location, transportation and meals for a speaker, and so on. The "profit" goes towards that, and as the JREF grows and has a larger financial basis to work with, these will grow in number.


Note - I don't work for the JREF, I'm not a spokesman for them, and I'm not privy to inside information. I am a businesswoman so have some general knowledge of what these things take and how businesses work - even not-for-profit businesses. However, the JREF and TAM has made a large impact on my sons and me, and I'm a supporter, both financially and vocally. They have problems, and I express my concerns, but overall I feel very positive about where the organization is headed.
 
I agree that it will probably not be possible to host a larger TAM at a 4-star hotel and lower the prices. A larger scale at a lower price would move it towards something more akin to a rock festival. :)

Maybe my comments were not clear enough: I do not advocate that. To be honest, I have no strong feelings in either direction, as I would attend anyway. I did assume that the people at JREF have their reasons for doing it the way that it's done, just as I understand why people criticise that. The JREF seems to try to move from a purely US-American towards a more international organisation, and that will take a lot of money and people. The TAMs will help with that. There have been some comments in Britain asking if the money wouldn't be better spend on British skeptical organisation, but that may be a rather shortsighted approach. The "TAM" label is able to draw the big names, and that will draw attention from the press, which will in turn help all the skeptics. The same should apply to Australia. I do think, though, that it would be a good idea to publish videos of the talks on the internet, as Bill on Skeptobot suggested.
 
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lionking said:
That's the best you can do? TAM=a BMW? Wow.
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TAM is like the BMW of conferences. Sure, you can attend cheaper conferences, but TAM offers certain luxuries that they don't.

Of course, this only applies to TAMs I have attended. I can't vouch for those I have not.

(And, for the record, I don't buy BMWs. But, it has little to do with the cost. I am pretty sure I could probably afford one if I really wanted it. I just happen to be a "regular car" kind of guy.)
 
TAM! Australia 2010 - The Amaz!ng Meeting

There was a bit discussion before the Atheist Convention in Melbourne earlier this year about the cost of attending that. But that also died down, a few weeks after it started.

I wasn't quite sure how I was going to save up to attend the Atheist Convention. But I made the decision to commit and use the credit card, then just save. (A decision I haven’t regretted.)

But I did just found out how I'm going to pay to attend. I just racked up 30+ hours of overtime for this weekend. I'm glad it's a long weekend. :)
 
Welcome Jin-oh Choi and hope to catch you at TAM downunder.

The earlybird rate to Aussie Skeptics of $A395 is not too bad on reflection.
 
lionking said:
Welcome Jin-oh Choi and hope to catch you at TAM downunder.

The earlybird rate to Aussie Skeptics of $A395 is not too bad on reflection.
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Thanks, I've already booked my flights and accommodation so just need to wait for the tickets. :)
 
I just think that it's slightly evil to start selling the tickets at 9am on a Sunday, especially considering that the Socceroos will be playing until 2am on the same morning...
 
The site is slow right now. I booked the harbor dinner cruise too.

Correction: the members.asnevents.com.au site seems to be down now. And I was right in the middle of confirming y credit card payment! :(
 
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