Re: <nettime> ISEA 2011 fees

[Gita Hashemi <gita@ping.ca>]

maybe because i like beating a dead horse, or just because i was in 
istanbul recently and do not intend to go back for isea, i'd like to 
contribute these two observations about/to the discussion re isea 
2011 fees (which i just caught up with):

- unless people took it off the list, it's interesting that the 
discussion died down without any concrete outcome.  some airing of 
discontent, some further rhetorical gestures and postures, but, in 
spite of a few very good suggestions for actions and interventions, 
nothing remotely serious got articulated through the collective 
chatter.

- also very interesting that nobody picked up on the illuminations 
and ideas offered by a "local" participant (5/16/11, Ayhan Aytes) 
that could have grounded discussion and potential 
interventions/alt.organizations in meaningful critique, connecting 
the workings of the international mega-events to the "local" politics.

it's 2011.  istanbul is still plastered with "world city 2010" 
posters.  the federal elections last weekend produced the expected 
results: nothing changed.  "why istanbul? why now?" are good 
questions to think through. it doesn't matter if you're begging, 
borrowing, or stealing to pay to go to isea.  you made a choice.  you 
could have made different choices.  if you're going, you can choose 
to limit your critical engagement to ranting on the list about the 
fees and then go on to organized dinners and partake of the touristic 
views of taksim while hobnobbing with other like-minded touring 
academics and artists; or, you could engage with the politics of the 
local (which will include isea for its duration) in multiple 
meaningful ways.  the force is yours to use.

looking forward to hearing back about all the excitement.

be well.

gita




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