Very few concerts I've attended were worth $25, and I understand that many performers are now commanding much higher prices. It also isn't worth it to me to pay the surcharge of three or four bucks to Ticketmaster (or whomever) for the privilege of paying for a ticket. However, that's the cost of concerts nowadays. Part is because people want to make money quick, and part is because it's a big financial risk to put on a concert that might well cause a riot.
I think the most expensive concert I attended this year was the Rick Fielding concert in Washington, DC. Was it ten bucks?
Anybody with a lick of sense could figure out that no businessman can recreate the magic of the original Woodstock - and the original Woodstock also had its share of problems. So, if people want to spend their money on an imitation Woodstock, they get what they deserve.
And no matter how much of a ripoff it is, it's not a justification for violence. j0_77, I don't think it's news that vendors at concerts are routinely guilty of price-gouging. I don't think news agencies are hiding anything by failing to report that.
-Joe Offer-