An interesting perspective indeed! Tell me, Elmer, have you ever been to other festivals? Have you seen or smelled the overflowing porta-potties? Did you ever sit outdoors in torential rains to try to hear your favorite performers?

I've been going to festivals and folk music camps for many years and part of the experience is dealing with the environment. For example, the Fox Hollow festival in upstate New York was one of the great music events ever. There's even a song about it.

"The thunderheads were talking to the Berkshires down below,
   It was raining in Fox Hollow but the people wouldn't go."...

At the Newport festival there used to be fences patrolled by guards with dogs who enforced the separation between performers and audience.

In the last 25 years that I've been at Camp Harmony, I remember many years in which the rains came down, a year in which all the pipes froze and we had no water, a year in which the food truck broke down and the food didn't get there on time. Ultimately, none of that mattered. Since the camp is billed as a do-it-yourself camp, everybody's input is what makes it happen. We solved the problems and went on to create our community and make our music.

Through it all, year after year, Camp Harmony has continued to supply me with musical experiences and a sense of community which enrich my life. No other event that I've ever attended broke the barrier between performer and audience as effectively.

Elmer, this year you might want to try a comfy resort in Baja somewhere and leave Camp Harmony for the folks who want to be there.