BWU2Buffs,
I would like to take the opportunity to respond to your post in a very courteous manner. Please don't take what I'm saying personally.
The fact of the matter is that you STILL have to get there early to get a good spot outside the ellipse. This lottery system doesn't save any trouble. In fact, by making the ellipse entry random and leaving only the spots outside the ellipse, it decreases the number of good GA spots available on a first come first served basis. That forces people to get there even earlier to ensure at minimum that they get a good GA spot outside the ellipse.
60/40 is still a majority. From an opposing standpoint I'd like to point out that while you can't please everybody, when 60%+ are dissatisfied - or prefer first come first served - that's not a success. Moreover, I can't remember a single complaint during the Elevation tour. There was nothing wrong with the first come first served system. It rewarded those who were willing to make a sacrifice. Restaurants, buses, movie theatres, amusement park rides all work on a first come first served basis because they know that it's the only fair way to decide on your position when you all pay the same price.
Again, I'll post the example time and time again. When you go to a movie theatre, you get to choose your seat based on when you get there. if people are there before you, they get to choose seats first. To me this is fair. Would you want to give up your seats to someone who came later than you to a movie? I don't want to put words in your mouth but I doubt it. Why? Because you made the sacrifice to be there first. The same goes at bus stops, restaurants, amusement park rides etc. You always get in line and wait your turn. Of course people at the back will SAY they think a lottery is more fair, but is it fair to those at the front? I doubt they can claim that it is. A system that preaches fairness should not make it more fair for some at the expense of fairness to others, and it should not punish those who make the greatest sacrifice.
Since 60% of people don't like the system, I don't think you can consider that "working well" especially because if you read the posts of people who have been affected by the lottery, it's more like 90% disatisfaction. The rest are voting as outsiders based on some moral principle. Moreover, again, I can't remember any complaints from Elevation. But I have yet to read a positive post about the system from somebody who got there early and was rejected from the ellipse. It's simply not fair that if you get there early, somebody who gets there later is entitled to a better spot.
And I would argue that IN the bomb shelter is not the place to look for disgruntled fans, but rather outside the bomb shelter, where they were unfairly placed.
How long will we see these threads? Well, to be honest, I'm going to bring it up as frequently and forcefully as I can. I plan on being in two GA lines for over a day (since you still have to get there early to get a good spot outside the ellipse) in sub-zero temperatures in Montreal in November. I have a lot to lose by not saying anything and keeping quiet. While I can certainly see how the issue is tiring for some, maybe they don't have anything to lose? I bought my tickets for a lot of money, under certain assumptions that seemed logical given the last tour and notions of fairness. I want to see that the process is fairly organized, which it is not.
Again, I say this with friendly undertones to answer your questions.
Jon
Nothing personal at all --
Getting there early: we can debate this one all you want, but you are choosing to get their early to be the first, non-beeped, GA ticket holder on the edge of the ellipse. To me, the bigger point of the lottery is focused on inside the ellipse. Either way, you are choosing your behavior, nothing, aside from your own desire to have a good seat, is forcing your behavior. I don’t blame you, but I think the policy recognizes a balanced approach to the most coveted spot – inside the ellipse bomb shelter / whatever.
While 60-40 may be a majority, it’s a skewed one as posted here. Besides, since when did this become a democracy?
Success is a relative term – measured against the goals set forth, and most likely these are the band’s goals trying to be as fair as balanced as possible to their wishes, as well as the fans.
Sure, the band is responsive to fans, but IMO you are kidding yourself if you think a simple 60-40 sample poll on a website is flowing directly into band policy. Plus, I’d say you are missing a ‘complaint´ from the Elevation Tour: the band complained that the same people were in the heart and front row each night after camping out the night before. Even heard some rumblings that the band got bummed that these very people left early to get camped out for the next night – sometimes the band’s complaints win over the fans concerns.
Nothing personal, but IMO comparisons to grocery stores, convenience stores, movie theaters and so forth are weak analogies at best. U2 shows are high demand, one or two night gigs per city. You can see the same movie anytime during the week, even the same night, go to a different theatre, or rent it later. The supply, demand, and emotional variables are dramatically different. Your assumption, like many in favor of first come first served, is that those who made sacrifices deserve the best spot – while this is probably closer to true than false, nobody makes the same type of sacrifice when choosing a spot in line at a movie, restaurant, or convenience store and so the comparisons are pretty weak, IMO. In short, that roller coaster we all want to ride, with the humongous lines in the hot sun; it will be there all summer at Six Flags, U2 is here one night.
Again, ‘working well’ is measured relatively against somebody’s goals. Your statistical thoughts are pure conjecture – my point is that a fan website, more likely to consist of die-hard fans, is not a representative sample of the ticket holding public, and might not even represent the GA ticket holders. Statistically, my instincts are that the only way to fairly and accurately measure the fan response to the lottery is ask a randomly selected sample of GA ticket holders a series of questions about the lottery system. Match the data against the band’s goals, and continue from there. If the vast majority of them – say 80% or more -- dislike the lottery, and the band is willing to see the same faces each night knowing that these same folks might bail out for their sleeping bags for tomorrow night’s show at the start of Yahew, then ditch it. If the data suggests anywhere from 65% or less against the lottery, then stay with the policy. Ultimately, my main point is that web polls are not very good at measuring data and extrapolating that data to a general population.
I wish you the best with your effort to change the policy – just mark your threads No GA Lottery so I can skip ‘em (-:
And please, for gosh sakes, someone teach me the multiple quote trick out here -- or is that secret until you pass 200 posts or 15 U2 shows in your career.?
No more petitions period! 
